The ethical travails of Alan Hevesi have sent state Democrats and Republicans scrambling to outmaneuver each other for control of the comptroller’s office, the one statewide position that appears to be most in play this November.

The strategy of Republicans is to ratchet up the pressure on Mr. Hevesi to resign before the November 7 general election and hope that the negative publicity around the comptroller will be enough to boost his little-known Republican challenger, J. Christopher Callaghan, to victory.

Democrats are seeking to distance themselves from Mr. Hevesi without ruining his chances for re-election. Mr. Hevesi is vowing to stay in the race and no prominent state Democrat has yet to call for his resignation. Democrats are also signaling to voters that they plan to oust Mr. Hevesi after the election and replace him with another Democrat.

Yesterday, Attorney General Eliot Spitzer, the Democratic nominee for governor, withdrew his endorsement of Mr. Hevesi, who is entangled in a scandal involving his failure to reimburse the state for using a state employee to chauffeur his wife.

Mr. Spitzer’s position on the comptroller’s race was carefully calibrated. Mr. Spitzer said he would not switch his endorsement to Mr. Callaghan, whom he described as unqualified for the job. Without calling on Mr. Hevesi to resign, he expressed support for a Senate trial in which lawmakers would vote on whether to remove the comptroller from office.

The attorney general’s decision to revoke his endorsement comes three days after the state ethics commission found probable cause to believe that Mr. Hevesi “knowingly” broke state law by using his office to secure “unwarranted privileges for himself and his wife.”

“The outcome of the Ethics Commission investigation presents information that compromises Alan Hevesi’s ability to fulfill his responsibilities,” Mr. Spitzer said in statement released by his campaign yesterday afternoon. “J. Christopher Callaghan’s experience and substantive positions lead me to believe he is not qualified to be Comptroller. Therefore, I can no longer support either candidate in the state Comptroller’s race.”

He continued: “I am confident that State Senate proceedings will carefully evaluate the facts and recommend appropriate action. In the event that Mr. Hevesi is removed from office through such a proceeding, it is the obligation of state leaders to act in a bipartisan manner to find a highly-qualified replacement.”

A source close to Mr. Spitzer said the attorney general decided to take back his endorsement of Mr. Hevesi after watching the comptroller debate Mr. Callaghan on NY1 on Wednesday evening. Mr. Spitzer “perceived Alan during the debate to be questioning the integrity of the commission,” the source said. “We are aware of him subsequently attacking the commission more so today. That’s where Alan crossed the line in Eliot’s mind.”

The source said Mr. Spitzer has particular professional respect for the chairman of the commission, Paul Shechtman, with whom Mr. Spitzer worked together at the office of the Manhattan district attorney, and also for Carl Loewenson, Mr. Spitzer’s appointee to the ethics commission.

Mr. Spitzer’s reference to a removal proceeding angered the Pataki administration, which accused the attorney of jumping the gun and assuming that the governor had decided to call for a Senate trial of Mr. Hevesi.

“It’s outrageous and presumptuous to assume that the governor has reached a conclusion on such a serious matter, and he will render a decision after appropriate consideration,” a spokesman for the governor, David Catalfamo, told the Sun.

Senate officials indicated late yesterday that they had not received word from the governor about going ahead with a trial. A spokesman for the Senate majority leader, John McArdle, said it would be unlikely that a trial could be completed before the election.

If the Senate votes to remove Mr. Hevesi from office — which would require a two-thirds vote — the chamber would then have the power to approve a replacement. But the scenario is unlikely to happen because it’s expected that Mr. Hevesi would cancel such a vote for removal by resigning beforehand. If he resigns, it would then be up to the entire Legislature — which is dominated by Democrats — to decide on a successor.

By holding a threat of a trial over the head of Mr. Hevesi, Republicans are seeking to further embarrass the comptroller and put pressure on Mr. Spitzer to call for Mr. Hevesi’s resignation. For Mr. Spitzer, a Senate trial could be potentially play to his advantage by taking pressure off of him to make a decision himself and allowing him to point to the future of a replacement candidate.

Yesterday, Mr. Spitzer’s Republican opponent in the campaign for governor, John Faso, sought to paint the attorney general into a corner by attacking the attorney general’s position. “It shows a total weakness of leadership on the part of Spitzer,” Mr. Faso told The New York Sun. “Does he actually mean to tell the voting public that they shouldn’t vote for state comptroller? Is he himself not going to vote?”

Mr. Callaghan, a former treasurer of Saratoga County, said Mr. Spitzer’s withdrawal of his endorsement did not go far enough. “By simply revoking his endorsement of Mr. Hevesi, Mr. Spitzer has with a wink and a nod given cover for democrats and republicans alike to ignore the sort of betrayal of the public’s trust which he purports to condemn,” he said in a statement.

Mr. Callaghan was the budget officer of Waterford from 1980 to 1986, a management analyst in the Saratoga County Administrator’s office from 1983 to 1997, and treasurer of Saratoga County from 1997 to 2006.

In his NY1 debate against Mr. Callaghan, Mr. Hevesi belittled his opponent’s work experience, saying he ran an office of 12 that couldn’t keep track of its paperwork.

Also in the NY1 debate, Mr. Hevesi said Mayor Giuliani’s corporation counsel, Michael Hess, had authorized use of a city employee to drive Mrs. Hevesi while Mr. Hevesi was serving as city comptroller. The state ethics commission report quotes a letter from Mr. Hess saying, “I think it is appropriate for her to be picked up by the Comptroller’s staff and a City car to join you in public activities and, on an occasional basis, for health related appointments.”

The use of the state employee extended beyond those functions, according to the ethics commission’s report, which says that the employee also served as a “companion” for Mrs. Hevesi, who has a number of serious health problems.