Scuttlebutt

The real intrigue in town surrounds the race for Attorney General.

Andrew Cuomo – whose signs are so ubiquitous you may have thought he was running to succeed Byron Brown as mayor – is clearly the front-runner. Mark Green will probably make his 25%, or come close.

Rounding out the race are former federal prosecutor Denise O’Donnell and litigation attorney / former HUD official Charlie King.

The Empire Zone says King wants the rules suspended so that all five candidates make it onto the ballot. Nevertheless, there is talk that King may free his delegates to vote for their second choice, since it seems unlikely that he’ll hit the 25% threshold.

Are Cuomo’s people are trying to convince delegates that other candidates are dropping out? Capitol Connection says maybe, and O’Donnell’s people are not pleased.

They’re also probably pretty displeased with these rumors:

Democrats close to Denise O’Donnell’s campaign for attorney general say they are hearing talk, apparently by supporters of rival candidates, that Ms. O’Donnell is (a) preparing to drop out, (b) seeking a deal to become a judge in exchange for leaving the race, and (c) coming under pressure from her hometown patron, Len Lenihan, the Erie County Democratic chairman, to leave the race.

Unofficial tallies say O’Donnell’s got about 10-12% of delegates lined up.

Daily Politics asked O’Donnell, and she denied that there was any secret deal.

There are no rumors about Sean Maloney. The only thing worse than having people talk shit about you is having no one talk about you.

The AG nomination takes place this afternoon.