t said he would not if Mr. Giuliani became a candidate.

Mr. Giuliani declined to be interviewed, but several people who have spoken to him said he sees parallels between the current conditions in Albany and those in the city before his election as mayor. Voters were willing to take a chance on him then, he has said, in part because they were fed up with the dysfunction.

“Several times, he said to me that he sees state government similar to where New York City was in 1993: out of control,” said Mr. King, who met with Mr. Giuliani late last month at the Capitol Hill Club. “So many people are saying the state can’t be governed, which is what everyone was saying about the city then. In Rudy’s mind, this is a challenge.”…

In Buffalo last week, Mr. Giuliani met with a number of Republican officials after delivering a motivational speech at a local hockey arena.

“I got the impression that he is really seriously considering this,” said Assemblyman Bill Reilich, chairman of the Republican Party in Monroe County, adding, “If he had made up his mind, I don’t think the intensity of his questions would have been what they were and he would have continued the conversation as long as he did.”