ALBANY — State Democratic Chairman Jay Jacobs plans to step down May 24 to clear the way for Gov. Cuomo to install his own party leader before the fall campaign.

“I think this is a good time for us to make a transition,” Jacobs told The Post after sending a letter to Cuomo announcing his plan to resign about four months before the end of his term.

Former Gov. David Paterson elevated Jacobs, the Nassau County chairman, to state chair in 2009 over the objections of then-Attorney General Cuomo, among others. But Jacobs said he’s been friends with Cuomo “for many, many years.”