New York's former insurance superintendent, Eric Dinallo, got a big boost in his campaign for state attorney general this past weekend in the form of a major newspaper endorsement, but the consumer press take on this race has not been unanimous, leaving the election very much up in the air.

On Aug. 22, the New York Daily News came out for Mr. Dinallo, stating that he “offers a blend of first-rate legal, executive and regulatory experience that is unique among the contenders and equips him best to lead New York's top law office amid rising challenges.”

The editorial added that “with substantial accomplishments in the public and private sectors, [Mr.] Dinallo's range extends from the guts of Wall Street to the workings of the health insurance industry–both of which will be high on the agenda. And he has been nothing if not effective under some very high-pressure circumstances.”

The Daily News also noted that as insurance superintendent, Mr. Dinallo “played a critical role in stabilizing AIG when the company's exposure to subprime mortgage securities threatened the economy.”

The editorial concludes that “Democrats would be wise to rally behind Eric Dinallo. He has the solid endorsement of the Daily News.”

However, Mr. Dinallo did not get the endorsement of another major player on the local media scene–the New York Times, which on Aug. 20 came out in favor of State Senator Eric Schneiderman.

“Mr. Schneiderman has courage, a strong voice and a deep commitment to ethical government,” according to the Times, hailing the way he ”challenged his party's leaders when they chose expedience over conviction” during his 12 years in office.

“Given the sump of Albany politics, we still thought long and hard about whether any member of the Legislature could be entrusted with this job. Mr. Schneiderman has demonstrated beyond a doubt his commitment to cleaner and more transparent government,” the Times concluded.

“We endorse Senator Schneiderman in the Democratic primary because of his sound judgment, legal expertise, political independence and long history of fighting for government reform,” the Times added.

While not endorsing his candidacy, the Times did have some nice things to say about Eric Dinallo.

“There are other worthy candidates in this race, most notably Eric Dinallo,” the Times acknowledged. “As an assistant attorney general, he played a central role in Mr. Spitzer's investigations of Wall Street. More recently, as the state insurance superintendent, he resolved the bitter insurance dispute that had long stalled construction at the World Trade Center site.”

However, according to the Times, “that said, Mr. Dinallo has yet to demonstrate the muscular public advocacy we have seen from Mr. Schneiderman.”

This is going to be a tough call as we come down the stretch for the Sept. 14 primary, with the victor facing Daniel Donovan Jr., the Staten Island district attorney and Republican candidate. Come November, we'll see who will replace current AG Andrew Cuomo–the odds-on favorite to follow in the footsteps of his predecessor, Eliot Spitzer, as governor.

A key factor is turnout, as I expect a paltry number of Democratic voters to bother showing up at the polls. The campaign that has the ability to get its hard core supporters to the voting booth will prevail.

I must say I am rooting for Eric, as he's the only candidate I know personally from his days at the Insurance Department. I found him to be a very open, dedicated public official, who despite coming from the Spitzer team, was no enemy of the private sector in general or the insurance industry in particular. Indeed, he was the general counsel for Willis before coming to the insurance department, after leaving Mr. Spitzer's employ.

Yet Erci was seen as a fair and reasonable regulator–certainly never letting the industry off easy, but not cutting it any special slack, either. That's how it should be, compared with those who try to build a career playing off the industry's poor public perception.

Most importantly, I thought that despite some inevitable public scapegoating after the AIG debacle, Eric did a good job maintaining some semblance of calm during the economic storm that nearly blew away our financial system, until Uncle Sam came to the rescue and bailed out the subprime-battered giant. I don't think he got enough credit for his cool under fire in those very difficult days.

Most of the public isn't aware of what Mr. Dinallo did to try to keep AIG afloat at the peak of the crisis. In retrospect, his actions helped stall for time until Washington finally assumed jurisdiction–as they should have, since AIG's insurance operations, overseen by Mr. Dinallo's department, remained sound, while its Financial Products unit, over which New York had no real authority, nearly brought down the entire company.

Traditionally, National Underwriter nor its editor ever endorses a particular candidate. But I can honestly say that on a personal note, I think Eric would make a good attorney general. I wish him good luck on primary day. He'll need it.

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