Former Rep. Sue Kelly will endorse Republican Senate hopful Bob Turner later this afternoon.

Kelly, a Republican former Hudson Valley lawmaker unseated in 2006 by Democrat John Hall, says in a statement that Turner is the “only candidate” who can take on Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand this fall.

“As a former member of Congress-and more importantly-in my role as a mother and grandmother, I am deeply concerned about the direction Obama and Gillibrand are taking our nation and it’s crystal clear that Bob Turner is the only candidate in this race that can stop them in their tracks. Bob’s momentous election to Congress as a fed-up citizen made him a national hero of the Republican Party. He will take that same spirit to the race against our junior senator, who has shown time and again that she is out of touch with the needs of average New Yorkers.”

Update: A reader notes that Mike Giuliani, who is Turner’s chief of staff in DC, was Sue Kelly’s CoS before she lost to Hall.

The Kelly endorsement comes as Turner looks for votes in the northern suburbs, holding a news conference at the Larchmont Metro North station on the complex housing settlement between the Department of Housing and Urban Development and Westchester County.

Turner sharply criticized HUD — and Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand by association — for what he considers strong arming by the federal government.

The pending announcement also serves to highlight support from a woman, backing that comes as Manhattan lawyer Wendy Long gathers steam from female Republicans.

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