Rep. King won't run against Gillibrand

Rep. Peter King (R-N.Y.) will not run for Senate to challenge Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand (D-N.Y.) in 2010, he announced Monday.

Citing concerns over fundraising ability, King said he will not run for any other office than reelection to his House seat.

"I’m not trying to kid anyone," King told the New York Daily News in a statement. "I wanted to be able to run for the Senate."

King said that to overcome the Democratic registration edge in the state, he would have needed to raise $30 million and wage an intensive media campaign, making it more difficult that -- King asserted -- Gillibrand has staked out a milquetoast record in the Senate.

"Senator Gillibrand generates neither strong support nor opposition," King said. "This makes it virtually impossible for me to raise the campaign funds I would need to overcome the built-in Democratic registration advantage and the countless millions of dollars which the Democrats will make available to Senator Gillibrand."

"I expect 2010 to be a Republican year and a well-financed candidate could well defeat Senator Gillibrand," he added.

It's not necessarily clear who that Republican candidate might be, however, former New York Gov. George Pataki (R) has been mentioned as a potential challenger to Gillibrand, with relatively positive poll numbers to boost his case.