State Conservative Party Chairman Mike Long told me just now he’s had a “turnaround” on Carl Paladino and will “lead the party to endorse” the Buffalo businessman now that Rick Lazio has officially ended his gubernatorial run.

“I’m going to make it very clear that I believe that’s the road we should go , and I believe that’s the road we have to travel,” Long said.

“That’s a turnaround, yes. Carl and I have had some conversations…we’re willing to close the book on the past and move forward and fight together for the people of New York.”

Long said his party will hold another state convention on Wednesday – this was an already-scheduled post-primary reorganization meeting at which an entire new state committee (and I believe the chairman) will be reconstituted.

Long said Paladino will be nominated at the meeting, and he suspects there will be some leaders who won’t support him (recall that initially after the GOP primary, Conservative leaders had a conference call and expressed a desire to run one of their own on Row D if Lazio decided not to run).

But ultimately, he said, Paladino will likely get the line. He’s not an enrolled Conservative, remember, and so needs permission to run on the line in the form of a Wilson Pakula, which the committee needs to approve as well.

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