Former New York Governor George Pataki says he'll run for president in 2012 if he doesn't believe any other Republicans have what it takes to unite the electorate.
The three-term governor, who weighed a presidential bid in 2008, told ABC News that his past job as mayor of Peekskill endowed him with the experience to make him a robust candidate in the next election. After all, with more than 22,000 people, the Westchester city is twice the size of Wasilla, he quipped.
"It was a challenging job, let me assure you," the 65-year-old said as he poked fun at former Wasilla mayor and one-time vice presidential candidate Sarah Palin, who is rumored to also be considering a 2012 run, reports The New York Post.
However, Pataki did say he would endorse Palin if she won the GOP nomination.
Pataki was a first-term state senator from Westchester when he launched his bid for governor in 1994. He defeated incumbent Mario Cuomo and went on to serve three consecutive four-year terms before Democrat Eliot Spitzer took over in 2006.
