Governor Paterson put on a defiant face Sunday, insisting he is going to run for office in 2010.

“I have said time and again that I’m running for governor next year,” Paterson said.

Paterson did not confirm nor deny reports that the Obama Administration has asked him to sit out the race. The governor said he has not talked with the president, but admitted to having discussions with other people about his future.

“I have had a number of different conversations with a number of people. They were confidential and I’m not going to discuss them,” Paterson said.

The governor addressed the stunning news at a short press conference Sunday that was as chaotic as his political life.

In the last year, Paterson has seen his poll numbers drop to record lows. And now, the nation’s first black president reportedly fears the state’s first black governor could lose to a Republican and bring down other state Democrats in the process.

“It’s very unusual for the president to get involved in statewide politics in this way,” said David Birdsell of Baruch College.

There are concerns both in New York and in Washington, D.C. about Paterson’s ability to govern. Those concerns became glaring during the circus-like selection process to replace Hillary Clinton in the U.S. Senate.

Obama’s friend, Caroline Kennedy, had lobbied for the job, but Paterson chose upstate Congresswoman Kirsten Gillibrand in the end.

The decision reportedly strained his relationship with the White House, as did Paterson’s recent comments about racial bias in the media.

President Obama’s involvement in the race could give Democrats a reason to back State Attorney General Andrew Cuomo, who is said to be thinking about running for governor.

“It could absolutely give them some cover and it couldn’t come from a better source,” Birdsell said.

Governor Paterson and the president will come face to face Monday, when Obama travels to upstate New York to give a speech on the economy.

Source: NY1