Of all the Democrats who sighed with relief at the news that New York Gov. David Paterson won't run for a full term in office this year, perhaps none was louder than that of Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand.

While his exit clears the Democratic primary field for Attorney General Andrew Cuomo -- saving him both money for the general election and a potentially bloody, intraparty battle -- Gillibrand is assured she won't be running her first Senate campaign with a politically anemic governor at the top of the ticket.

Paterson was scheduled to announce his decision to leave the race this afternoon -- less than one week after formally announcing he was running.

Republicans believe he was dead weight for Gillibrand and that Democrats in Washington knew it. Speaking with RealClearPolitics earlier this week, one New York Republican Party official said he believed the White House wanted Paterson out of the race more for Gillibrand's advantage than Cuomo's.

The White House reportedly told Paterson in September that it would prefer he not seek election to a full term this year. Paterson refused to do so until now, as revelations surfaced this week about his alleged intervention in a domestic abuse case involving one of his top aides.

Cuomo is widely seen as a much more attractive candidate to lead the Democratic ticket in November, and polling against Republican Rick Lazio proved he had a far better shot at winning the governor's race than Paterson. Cuomo hasn't officially entered the race, but it is believed he will -- especially after hiring Phil Singer, a spokesman for Hillary Clinton's presidential bid, earlier this month.

Cuomo would enter the race with sky-high approval ratings that Democrats hope will help trickle votes down the ballot, especially to Gillibrand.

Appointed just more than a year ago to fill Clinton's Senate seat, the former congresswoman remains unknown to a third of the state's voters. A Siena Research Institute poll released this week found that just 30 percent would vote to elect her, while 40 percent would vote for someone else and another 30 percent were undecided.

With Paterson officially out of the running for governor, Gillibrand's biggest impediment right now to a November special election victory is a potential primary challenge from former Tennessee Rep. Harold Ford Jr., who met earlier this week with the state party chairman.

As for November, although two Republicans are currently running, the state GOP is continuing to discuss the race with other potential -- and possibly more viable -- challengers.