Less than 24 hours after deciding to have a single ballot for the AG race – a move likely to benefit only three of the five contenders, at best – state Democratic Party Chairman Jay Jacobs has had a change of heart.

“I want to be very clear on this: Because we’ve had five candidates who have, over the year, worked hard to get substantial support throughout the state committee and have that support, I am going to allow a two ballot process which will end up letting all five on the ballot,” Jacobs told me this morning.

“…Important county chairs took a look at the reaction to our decision,” the chairman continued. “And I am now anxious to make sure the process is as inclusive as possible for these candidates, who really have received substantial support.”

When I asked Jacobs who had gotten to him since we last spoke, he laughed at first.

He then turned serious, telling me that he had received an earful from a number of sides – particularly the Democratic Rural Conference county chairs who had given their nod to Eric Dinallo in their straw poll and felt the one-ballot process disadvantaged him.

They have a point.

At this point, only Nassau County DA Kathleen Rice is certain to have sufficient support (25 percent) to get on the ballot, and, at the rate things have been going, it was possible that by the time the vote rolled around on Wednesday, she would be the only one to make the convention cut.

That would have forced all four of the remaining contenders – Dinallo, Sean Coffey, Sen. Eric Schneiderman and Assemblyman Richard Brodsky – to go the expensive and timely petition route.

Coffey, who has pledged to spend $2 million of his own cash on the race, was likely to petition his way onto the ballot anyway. But the others had been counting on at least having a shot at getting the convention nod.

A number of the AG contenders have some pretty powerful forces pulling for them.

Rice is widely viewed as Cuomo’s favorite, although, as Jacobs has said, if the AG really wanted to have anointed someone, he could have done it by now.

Schneiderman is backed by Senate Democratic Conference Leader John Sampson and most of his fellow majority members.

Brodsky has Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver in his corner.

I asked Jacobs if he had consulted with Cuomo about his two-ballot decision, and he said:

“I’m not going to go into detail about whom exactly I talked to, but you can be well assured that he’s beem advised and he’s OK with it.”

“…The sensitivities apparently are very high. I talked to everyone that i need to speak to and consult with, and I think this is probably the best course of action.”

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