The spurious claim that the state attorney general's lawsuit against the operators of the Apollo Theatre was a Republican political attack is about to have its bluff called. Thankfully, the new attorney general, Eliot Spitzer, a Democrat, vows to push ahead with the case.

Indeed, in an echo of Dennis Vacco, the Republican incumbent he defeated in November, Spitzer is urging the theater's board of directors to step down. That was sound advice when Vacco gave it, and it is equally sound now.

Spitzer, saying that "clearly, something is amiss" at the Apollo, vowed to "go forward as the law demands and the facts demand" when he takes office in two days. He added: "Wouldn't it be nice if everyone on the board said, 'Okay, you know what, let's start on day one, start fresh.'? Maybe if everybody just got off it would be the cleanest way to proceed."

His comments, made in a meeting with this page, prove once again that the case is not about politics. It's about the fact that the government-owned Apollo has fallen into a dismal state. The legendary building is crumbling, the bank account is empty, and the stage is dark.

You don't need to be a Republican to be outraged. You need only care about the law, a decaying icon and the lost opportunity to revitalize 125th St.

The current board, under chairman Rep. Charles Rangel, a Democrat, handed away to private interests the lucrative TV rights to the Apollo name but got very little in return. An expired five-year deal has allowed businessman and Rangel pal Percy Sutton to produce his successful "It's Showtime at the Apollo" program, which generated $26 million during the contract.

The Beverly Hills-based syndicator took its cut of $6 million. But the Apollo got only $200,000 — even though the agreement called for a full quarter of the revenues, a shortfall of millions.

Vacco, after a preliminary probe, sued most of the board members for a failure of fiduciary responsibility and asked that a receiver be named to protect the Apollo assets. The request is under consideration by Justice Ira Gammerman of Manhattan Supreme Court.

Board members, their lawyers said yesterday, are eager for a trial and have no intention of quitting. Perhaps. Or perhaps someone can convince Rangel that now that Democrat Spitzer has joined the chorus of those calling on him to step aside, the congressman should, finally, heed the call. The Apollo is too important to let games continue to get in the way of its rebirth.