Unless something very, well, weird happens, President Obama will likely carrying New York this November.

 The last time the state voted for a Republican president was to re-elect Ronald Reagan in 1984.

Since then it’s been all Democratic candidates every four years who carry the state.

And Mitt Romney, the former governor of a neighboring state, is not expected to do any better.

Still, as former Gov. George Pataki told Liz last night on the show, the Republican Party in New York has to push forward anyway, even if they face the strong headwinds of Democratic enrollment.

“I’m an honest guy and I wish that I could look you in the eye and say he’s going to carry New York,” Pataki said. “It’s going to be hard. This is a Democratic state. It’s important that we raise the flag and do the best we possibly can to give voters a legitimate choice as opposed to just a rubber stamp as a fait accompli.”

The state party has focused in part on growing the party on the local level, either through countywide victories or in successful Congressional candidacies.

Pataki, the last Republican in New York to win a statewide election (and that was nearly 10 years ago this year), says it’s important that the party at least show some spunk, even in a presidential election year.

“To be honest it’s an uphill fight, but that doesn’t mean you don’t fight the fight,” he said.

More problematic for the party is keeping control of the state Senate in an election year. The presidential contests naturally draw out more Democrats, though Republicans have managed to bolster their power this year through controlling the redistricting process and working well Gov. Andrew Cuomo.

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