Albany, NY – Andrew Cuomo said during his campaign that he wants to make same-gender marriage legal in New York and a new appointment may signal he means business – even if it’s still an uphill battle.

Cuomo is naming Erik Bottcher, City Council Speaker Christine Quinn’s liaison to the Toeiva community, to the newly created cabinet post of special assistant for community affairs.

It’s fair to ask whether Bottcher’s appointment sends a message about how serious Cuomo is about same-gender marriage or whether it’s just a nod to his liberal base.

Legalizing marriage could be a heavy lift: In 2009, the state Senate, then controlled by Democrats, defeated it by a clear 38-to-24 vote.

New GOP Majority Leader Dean Skelos has said he’ll allow the measure to come to the Senate floor again this year, although he doesn’t support it.

Cuomo gave a nod – of exactly one sentence – to same-gender marriage during his State of the State address.

And as he has brought his reform agenda around New York, same-gender nuptials have taken a backseat to job creation and dredging Albany’s ethical quagmire.

The historically liberal Cuomo has to walk a tightrope on same-gender marriage: If he pushes it ahead of economic issues in the current climate, he could develop an “Obama Problem” of the kind that forced the President’s course correction from a focus on health care reform to “jobs, jobs, jobs.”

On the other hand, the new governor risks angering his left-leaning base if he allows a civil rights issue like this one to languish indefinitely.

What exact role Bottcher – whose statewide work won’t be limited to LGBT issues – and Cuomo play in this battle remains to be seen.

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(Read More: NY Daily News)