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Carl Paladino is a lot of things -- a multimillionaire businessman, lawyer, family man, devout Catholic and a blunt guy.

And on Tuesday, he became the New York state Republican Party's gubernatorial candidate, stunning the party establishment by beating their candidate, Rick Lazio.

Paladino, a one-time Democrat who switched his party affiliation in 2005, is being heavily criticized for controversial comments he has made and public policy positions put forth.

He reportedly called former New York Republican Gov. George Pataki a "degenerate idiot" and lashed out at the Republican establishment during the campaign against Lazio.

He promised to "take a baseball bat to Albany" -- the state capital; is outspoken against plans to build an Islamic community center near ground zero in lower Manhattan -- even suggesting that the state take control of the area through eminent domain; and is steadfastly anti-abortion, even in cases of incest and rape.

Paladino is also far from conventional. His campaign recently mailed out garbage-scented fliers declaring "Something Stinks in Albany" and featuring photos of seven New York Democrats whose political careers were marred by scandal.

"It's basically a folder, and then when you open it, when the oxygen hits the card the stink starts," Paladino told CNN's "AC360" on Thursday. "The longer you keep it open the worse the stink gets. That's our analogy of Albany."

Paladino comes with a lot of baggage, observers note: He has acknowledged having a child outside of his marriage; is one of the biggest renters of property to the state; and was caught sending pornographic and racist e-mails, among other things.

Paladino has a rough road ahead in his race against Cuomo, a popular politician in the state.

In a Quinnipiac Poll released before the state's GOP primary, Cuomo led Paladino by 60-23 percent. Independent voters backed Cuomo over Paladino 54-21 percent.

While Paladino has the money -- he is estimated to be worth $150 million -- his willingness to say whatever is on his mind will hurt him, according to a political analyst following the race.

"[His comments] go directly from the back of his neck to his mouth without passing through his cerebral cortex," said Doug Muzzio, a professor of public policy at Baruch College in New York. "The question becomes -- what is Carl going to say today? There is real entertainment value in this."

Muzzio also credits low voter turnout overall and heavy support for Paladino in upstate New York for his win.

But winning the general election requires amassing a large percent of the vote downstate -- and among Democratic voters.

"This is not going to be a close partisan primary," Muzzio said. "This is going to be a general election where the Democrats hold a 5-to-3 registration advantage where 20 percent of the electorate are independents."

Muzzio's advice for Cuomo: Repeatedly debate Paladino.

"Usually that person with that much of a lead would avoid debates with the person who is that far behind," Muzzio said. "Given Paladino's mouth and lack of control over it, maybe you have a debate per week with Paladino to show people what a lunatic he is."

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