New Governor Will Make History

NEW YORK — David Paterson, a politician little known outside New York, is set to become the state's first African-American governor and the nation's first legally blind governor on Monday following the resignation of Eliot Spitzer.

The 53-year-old Paterson, elected with Spitzer 16 months ago, will serve a term that runs through the end of 2010.

"Like all New Yorkers, I am saddened by what we have learned over the past several days," Paterson said in a statement. He said it is now time for the New York government to "get back to work as the people of this state expect from us."

Paterson inherits a state in financial turmoil with a $4.4 billion deficit and a looming April 1 deadline for approving a new budget.

"I told him this morning stepping into being governor in this way is very challenging," Sen. Charles Schumer, D-N.Y., told reporters in Washington. Schumer said Paterson should not worry about being able to do everything on his first day.

Paterson is from a prominent political family in Harlem. His father is Basil Paterson, the first black person to serve as New York's secretary of state and as vice-chair of the national Democratic Party.

"We will be in good hands," former New York City Mayor Ed Koch said. He said Paterson "is highly intelligent, has a first-rate warm personality and is an excellent leader."

Widely respected by New York lawmakers of both parties, Paterson has long been known as a trailblazer.

He was elected to represent Harlem in the New York State Senate in 1985 and became minority leader in 2002 when the GOP controlled the chamber. He was the first black legislative leader in New York history.

In that role, he proposed legislation for a $1 billion voter-approved stem cell research initiative. He also pushed for a statewide alternative energy strategy and a crackdown against domestic violence.

A 2006 profile in the New York Observer newspaper called him a "mystery man" who had "a complicated relationship with the truth and a difficulty in saying no" to opponents.

When his interviewer suggested that Paterson was too quick to agree, he replied: "I think that's right. How do you like that? I think that's a good criticism. I think I'm by nature a conciliator."

As the state's first black lieutenant governor, he has been an advocate for minority- and women-owned businesses in New York.

Paterson, who lost most of his sight as an infant after suffering an infection, became the first visually impaired person to address a Democratic National Convention in 2004.

"I have a vision for New York state," he said then. "I can't see it with my eyes, but I feel it in my heart."

Paterson has enough sight in his right eye to walk unaided and, at a close distance, recognize faces and read text.

The American Foundation for the Blind said Tuesday that Paterson would be the first legally blind governor in U.S. history. The foundation noted that Paterson served on its Board of Trustees from 1997 through 2006.

A graduate of Columbia University and Hofstra Law School, Paterson is an adjunct professor at Columbia's School for International and Public Affairs.

Paterson and his wife, Michelle, have two children, Ashley and Alex.