[1] The Democratic Party nomination was won by Scott Stringer, who defeated former Governor Eliot Spitzer, who resigned in disgrace in 2008.

New York City borough President Scott Stringer was considered to be the front runner for the Democratic nomination, having raised nearly $3.5 million as of July 7, 2013.

When former New York governor Eliot Spitzer announced his intention to run for the office, he brought a larger challenge to Stringer.

On July 8, his campaign manager released a statement saying, "Scott Stringer has a proven record of results and integrity and entered this race to help New York's middle class regain its footing.

By contrast, Eliot Spitzer is going to spurn the campaign finance program to try and buy personal redemption with his family fortune.

"[7] Spitzer appeared on CNBC's Morning Joe on July 9, and was visibly emotional when asked about what he had learned the past five years.

Although he hired staffers to collect petitions, Spitzer's campaign did not list any major spending during the then most recent filing period.

A lawyer representing Spitzer's campaign said the candidate was "very busy" last week working on filing petitions with the signatures he needed to secure a spot on the Democratic ballot.

Just as we've seen on his decision to abandon campaign spending limits he once supported, it's increasingly clear that Eliot Spitzer believes there are two standards in public life—one for him, and one for everyone else.

On July 18 CNN host Jake Tapper talked about Spitzer's "incredibly reckless and ... very illegal" prostitution scandal.

"[13] However, Politico blogger Gary Bauer suggested that, unlike Anthony Weiner (who was running for mayor), Spitzer seemed to be redeeming himself.

[38] New York Republican consultant William F. B. O'Reilly opined that Burnett would have a reasonably strong chance of success in the election if Spitzer won the Democratic primary.

Any candidate not among the six qualified New York parties (Democratic, Republican, Conservative, Green, Independence and Working Families) must petition their way onto the ballot; they do not face primary elections.