Jeanine Pirro, District Attorney of Westchester District, New York, on Wednesday officially announced her intention to challenge Senator Hillary Clinton for New York's junior Senate Seat.

"This is the culmination of a lifetime of commitment, advocacy, and public service on behalf of New Yorkers... I come to this race as a fighter, and advocate, and an agent for change," Pirro said.

The attorney also had some harsh words for Clinton when she accused the senator of shortchanging New York. "She hasn't delivered and she will find out that the people of New York have not forgotten her empty promises," she said.

She also criticized Clinton for using her position as a springboard for a White House bid. "New York deserves a senator who has New York's interest at heart, not the divided loyalties of one seeking to satisfy the needs of people in Iowa, New Hampshire or Florida," she said.

Generally believed a moderate Republican, Pirro clarified her stance on several issues that may align her more with conservatives.

While she has long been pro-choice, Pirro recently made it clear that she's against late-term abortion and would only support the procedure to protect the woman's life.

In an interview earlier Tuesday, she also said that she opposes gay marriage.

Recent national polls have shown the former first lady as the leading contender for the 2008 Democratic presidential nomination, although Clinton has said she is completely focused on her re-election bid and is not thinking about a run for the White House.

A state poll released last week by the Quinnipiac University Polling Institute had Clinton leading Pirro, 63 percent to 29 percent.

Pirro is not the only contender for the Republican nomination.

Among other hopefuls is Edward Cox, a Manhattan attorney who is a son-in-law of the late President Richard Nixon.

Source: Xinhua