ALBANY — An unprecedented revolt sparked by two renegade Democrats yesterday ousted Majority Leader Malcolm Smith and returned Republicans to power in the state Senate, rocking the Capitol and dealing a severe blow to Gov. Paterson.
Thirty Senate Republicans were joined by scandal-scarred Democrats Pedro Espada Jr. of The Bronx and Hiram Monserrate of Queens to form a majority in the 62-member chamber.
The action came on an unexpected motion by Republican Sen. Thomas Libous of Binghamton.
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Libous stunned the Senate chamber when he rose and announced a resolution naming Espada the new Senate president.
The motion also restored Senate Minority Leader Dean Skelos (R-LI) to the post of majority leader.
The historic maneuver left Senate Democrats, who in January took the majority for the first time since 1965, slack-jawed and powerless.
And it stunned Paterson.
“It’s despicable what happened here today,” said the governor last night, bristling and occasionally slamming his open palm on a lectern as he appeared briefly before reporters.
“When do we get around to governing?”
He condemned the Republican-backed coup as “an unnecessary distraction to government dressed up in the cloak falsely of reform.”
The action throws the fate of nearly every item on Paterson’s agenda — from same-sex marriage to ethics reform to mayoral control in schools — in doubt just two weeks before the Legislature is scheduled to begin its summer recess.
Without a clear Senate leader, all action in the chamber will grind to a halt. Paterson defiantly said he would continue to recognize Smith as majority leader until the issue is resolved in the courts.
“Unbelievable,” one longtime Capitol lobbyist said of the revolt. “I’ve never seen anything like it.”
As word spread, Assembly members abandoned their own proceedings on the other side of the Capitol to watch the circus. Lobbyists grilled passing reporters for information.
News of the chaos quickly reached City Hall in New York, where lawmakers called off budget talks and rescheduled committee meetings.
Few in the Senate chamber seemed more blindsided than the Democrats’ presiding officer, Sen. Neil Breslin of Albany. He repeatedly ignored Republican efforts to overrule him as the cornered Democrats frantically sought some way to escape the fateful session.
After some 20 minutes, Breslin, prodded by Deputy Senate Majority Leader Jeff Klein (D-Bronx), declared a recess and Democrats fled the chamber.
They shut the lights and the TV feed, but both were inexplicably turned back on a few moments later.
Sources said the Democrats also threatened to call in the State Police to clear the chamber, but no such effort was attempted before the new Senate leadership ordered a recess.
Espada, who had sat with Republicans during a previous stint in the Senate, ripped the state’s Democratic leadership for “five months of failure” and said his rebellious coalition would fill the “leadership vacuum.”
Since there’s no lieutenant governor, the vote puts Espada next in line to succeed Paterson.
“What you witnessed today may be characterized as a power grab, as a coup,” Espada said. “[But] this is a new beginning for New York state, a new beginning of bipartisan government.”
As Espada spoke, Rochester-area billionaire Thomas Golisano, furious over Smith’s support for a $4 billion income-tax hike on the wealthy, stood at his side.
Sources said the three-time gubernatorial candidate pledged resources from his Responsible New York political-action committee to Espada or any Democrat who joined the rebellion.
Smith remained silent and huddled behind closed doors for more than an hour.
Finally, he put out a statement saying:
“This was an illegal and unlawful attempt to gain control of the Senate and reverse the will of the people who voted for a Democratic majority.”
Later, Smith said, “I would hope that the public is outraged. The Senate majority is still in Democratic hands and will be in Democratic hands.”
Members of both sides agreed that it would take weeks and possibly months of legal scuffling to settle the question of who’s in charge.
While they controlled the floor, the Republicans quickly pushed through a package of rules that would, among other things, submit legislative leaders to term limits and require fair distribution of member items and legislative staff.
Even Mayor Bloomberg, a longtime ally of the Senate GOP, was stunned.
“I talked to the governor for two seconds earlier,” Bloomberg told reporters. “He was as floored as I was; he didn’t know any more then I did.”