Republican gubernatorial candidate Rob Astorino has tapped an upstate African-American law enforcement executive to be his running mate.
Sources said Chemung County Sheriff Christopher Moss will be the GOP candidate for lieutenant governor.
Moss is president of the New York State Sheriff’s Association.
Chemung County is about 230 miles northwest of New York City.
Astorino has said he intends to make cleaning up Albany corruption a key part of his campaign, and having top cop Moss on the ticket helps reinforce that message, GOP sources said.
Moss has been a critic of Gov. Cuomo’s stricter gun control law.
He also represents a county in the southern tier rich with natural gas and subject of a fierce debate over or drilling or hydrofracking.
Astorino’s campaign declined comment before the official announcement.
Cuomo’s lieutenant governor, Robert Duffy, is stepping down at the end of the year.
The governor has yet to name his new running mate.