Republican candidate Rob Astorino says his campaign for governor is not a “dry run” for another race.

Astorino trails incumbent Democrat Andrew Cuomo by double digits in most polls. Some observers have said he could lose by 15 to 20 points and still have a moral victory.

He dismissed the notion Monday during an interview on Fox 5.

“I’m ready to be governor on Jan. 1,” Astorino said. He said the race is “slipping away” from Cuomo as the 1994 election did from his father, Gov. Mario Cuomo.

Later, during an interview on the Capitol Pressroom radio show, Astorino said he would like to restore billions of dollars in funding to schools. But he noted that he would have to deal with deficits and competing interests in the Legislature.

(AP)