By Mark Scott
Buffalo, NY – Republican gubernatorial candidate Carl Paladino has picked a former New York City council member as his running mate. Tom Ognibene of Queens has agreed to join Paladino as his lieutenant-governor candidate.
Paladino said Ognibene is a strong conservative who is not afraid to speak his mind.
"Tom is not prepackaged or reserved, much like me," Paladino said. "He has spent his life in public service giving voice to the middle-class and blue-collar voters who feel left out of the system."
Paladino says he plans to collect 40,000 signatures to secure a spot on the Republican primary ballot in November. Fifteen-thousand signatures are required by law. Paladino says one thousand people have already signed up to distribute his petitions.