In a telephone interview on Sunday night, Mr. Spitzer, 54, sounding restless after an unwelcome hiatus from government, said he had re-envisioned the often-overlooked office and yearned to resurrect the kind of aggressive role he played as New York State's attorney general. He said that after consulting with his family and taking the temperature of the city's electorate, he believed New Yorkers would be open to his candidacy. "I'm hopeful there will be forgiveness, I am asking for it," he said.
His re-emergence comes in an era when politicians — like Representative Mark Sanford of South Carolina and the New York mayoral contender Anthony D. Weiner — have shown that public disapproval, especially over sexual misconduct, can be fleeting, and that voters seem receptive to those who seek forgiveness and redemption.
His decision startled the city's political establishment, which is already unsettled by the rapid rise of Mr. Weiner, who also plunged into a campaign without party elders' blessing.
Mr. Spitzer batted away a question about whether the reception enjoyed by Mr. Weiner, who is running neck and neck with the front-runner Christine C. Quinn, factored into his decision, but said he was approached regularly by New Yorkers who say they would support him if he ran for office again.
"It happens all the time," he said. "People who walk with me on the street say, 'People really do want you to get back in.' "
Mr. Spitzer, who built a national reputation as a zealous watchdog of Wall Street while attorney general, imagines transforming the comptroller's office into a robust agency that would not merely monitor and account for city spending, as it does now, but also conduct regular inquiries into the effectiveness of government policies in areas like high school graduation rates.
Such a reading of the office, which would significantly expand its scope, could put Mr. Spitzer, a Democrat, into conflict with the city's next mayor, much as his tenure as attorney general put him at odds with federal regulators of Wall Street.
"The metaphor is what I did with the attorney general's office," he said. "It is ripe for greater and more exciting use of the office's jurisdiction."
Since Mr. Spitzer's resignation as governor, public surveys have shown little appetite for his run to elective office. So instead, he has worked as a television commentator on CNN, Current TV and NY1. None of them seemed to satisfy his thirst for political combat. Asked if he missed the frenetic pace and power that comes with a public platform, Mr. Spitzer responded readily, "Yes."
The son of a wealthy real estate developer, Mr. Spitzer said he would pay for the campaign himself, forgoing the city's public financing system. The race is expected to cost several million dollars.
Mr. Spitzer has little time to waste: To make the primary ballot in September, candidates for citywide office — mayor, comptroller and public advocate — must collect at least 3,750 signatures from registered voters from their political party by Thursday.
With Mr. Spitzer's name recognition and three million Democrats in the city, this should not be a difficult task, but he plans to flood the streets and supermarkets with some 100 signature gatherers starting on Monday.
"I am going to be on the street corners," he said. "We will be out across the city."
Mr. Spitzer's entry promises to shake up a comptroller's contest that had been viewed as an all-but-certain victory for Scott M. Stringer, the Manhattan borough president who has been embraced by the city's unions and Democratic establishment. The office of Mr. Stringer, an amiable former lawmaker who was previously squeezed out of the mayor's race, released a statement on Sunday night after being caught unaware by Mr. Spitzer's news.
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