For the past year, all we’ve been hearing is that New York Democrats are poised to win all the important state races this November: that Hillary Clinton, Eliot Spitzer, and whoever runs for attorney general, whether Andrew Cuomo or Mark Green, are surefire winners. Meanwhile, the Republican Party can’t seem to figure out who its candidates will be. It’s time for Governor Pataki to show real leadership by ignoring poll data and throwing his support behind good candidates who represent the core principles that win elections nationwide.

At a function last week, I ran into Edward Cox, who at the time said he would be willing to run against Senator Clinton if the governor supported his candidacy. He did not, and Mr. Cox has formally dropped out of the race. This is a great pity because Mr. Cox had the necessary national and international credentials, and he would have waged an honorable campaign based on facts, not innuendo. At the moment, the former mayor of Yonkers, John Spencer, has mounting endorsements and support for his candidacy, but the fact remains that Senator Clinton has a $23 million campaign chest.

Is this a hopeless problem for Republicans? Not necessarily. Senator Clinton does not have a strong record of accomplishments for New York. She’s in the party that is out of power nationwide and delivers little for us besides press attention. In addition, recent poll numbers show that firm support for her presidential aspirations is extremely slim – only 16%. With the governor’s support, a credible GOP campaign might even unseat Senator Clinton and dampen her ambitions for higher office. Imagine how that would improve the dismal legacy that, so far, Pataki is leaving us.

Mr. Spitzer is also vulnerable. Any credible gubernatorial candidate – like William Weld, John Faso, or Patrick Manning – could make mincemeat of his overblown record as attorney general. Besides attacking Wall Street and crisis pregnancy centers, what has Spitzer really done for the little guy who votes? New York has a very weak anti-stalking law that should have been beefed up years ago. How many times have we read sadly of women being killed by former lovers who’ve repeatedly violated impotent orders of protection?

Why hasn’t our chief prosecutor used his considerable influence to urge stronger laws against crimes that affect all of us, like identity theft? By the way, whatever happened to Senator Schumer’s two campaign workers who allegedly gained illegal access to the credit report of Michael Steele, the lieutenant governor of Maryland, who’s running for the U.S. Senate? Mr. Steele happens to be black, Catholic, and Republican. Does this mean people can steal his identity and get off with a slap on the wrist, as long as they’re working for a Democrat? Even though this case was not in Mr. Spitzer’s jurisdiction, it would have been refreshing to hear him state what he’s done to ensure that New Yorkers are protected against the crime of identity theft.

Andrew Cuomo will probably be the Democratic nominee for attorney general. While Jeanine Pirro currently is the leading GOP candidate, she may face a primary challenge from Daniel Donovan Jr., the district attorney of Staten Island. In his short time in office, Mr. Donovan has racked up an impressive conviction rate.

I spoke to Mr. Donovan this week, and he insists he has not yet made a firm commitment to run for attorney general. Nor would he compare records with Mr. Spitzer, his former colleague in the Manhattan district attorney’s office.

“As a prosecutor and someone who hasn’t spent his whole career in politics, I am coming to this with a new perspective, fresh ideas, and optimism that we can do better,” Mr. Donovan told me. “I’m very concerned by what I see as rampant fraud and abuse in our state’s $44.5 billion Medicaid system. … By curbing fraud in the health sector, imagine how much we could divert to infrastructure, education, or even tax cuts for working families and to bring more jobs into New York.”

If Governor Pataki doesn’t do all he can to support viable Republican candidates in his home state, his own presidential bid will be a huge joke.