Watch out AG Andrew Cuomo, here comes NYC Councilman Charles Barron.

According to Mary Alice Miller on Room Eight, the outspoken and controversial Brooklyn Democrat announced at a weekly meeting of the United African Movement that he plans to run for governor on a yet-unnamed third party line.

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The point (other to bring attention to the never-press shy councilman) is to draw attention to the lack of diversity on the statewide Democratic ticket, which is all-white, downstate dominated and, save AG primary contender Kathleen Rice and US Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand, almost entirely male.

Black leaders started voicing their concern about this state of affairs almost immediately after Cuomo picked Rochester Mayor Bob Duffy – a white male upstater – to be his preferred LG running mate.

A number of black elected officials’ names had been circulating as potential No. 2s for Cuomo, including Buffalo Mayor Byron Brown, whose local troubles were deemed too toxic for the AG’s reform platform; and Sen. Andrea Stewart-Cousins, who is well-regarded but lacks executive experience and isn’t considered a heavy hitter.

A meeting of black leaders was convened last weekend in Mt. Vernon by the Rev. Al Sharpton and attended by people like former state Comptroller H. Carl McCall (Cuomo’s primary opponent in 2002), political consultants Bill Lynch and Roberto Ramirez (who got caught up in Cuomo’s pension fund pay-to-play probe), Sen. Ruth Hassell-Thompson, Senate President Malcolm Smith, Rep. Greg Meeks and the NAACP’s Hazel Dukes.

Barron wasn’t there, and told the Amsterdam News:

“The recent Black leadership meeting regarding the all-white state Democratic slate is after the fact and too little too late!”

“Here we have a situation with a city with a majority Black and Brown population—and no one is running who represents our interests.”

Barron has a long history as a bomb-thrower and agitator, but he is incredibly press savvy and he could make things uncomfortable for Cuomo.

He crossed swords with NYC Council Speaker Christine Quinn, mounting a failed challenge to her leadership post that resulted in his loss of his committee chairmanship.

He can’t run for his current office again due to term limits and has been casting about for something else to do for a while now, running failed bids for mayor (he dropped out of the 2005 race) and Congress and mulling a borough president run. Barron’s wife, Inez, is a member of the Assembly.

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