Tag: AL-Gov

• NH-Sen, NH-01: Carol Shea-Porter has announced she won’t seek the Senate nomination, giving Paul Hodes a clear path and also preventing us the trouble of holding an open seat.

• PA-Sen: Ed Rendell told a local news affiliate that he, Bob Casey Jr., and Joe Biden have all tried to talk Arlen Specter into switching over to the Democratic Party, but he remains “bound and determined to stay a Republican.”

• NH-02: Stonyfield Farms CEO Gary Hirshberg, a possible candidate to replace Paul Hodes, just wrote his first diary at Daily Kos (on coal power). Is he gearing up to take on a higher political profile? (D)

• TN-Gov: Chris Cillizza fingers Mike McWherter, the son of former Gov. Ned McWherter, as the likely Democratic nominee for Tennessee’s gubernatorial election in 2010 according to “informed insiders”. McWherter, a businessman who has never held elected office, considered running for Senate last year, but ultimately decided to keep his powder dry. (J)

• AL-Gov: Alabama’s AG Troy King plans to run for re-election, rather than pursue the governor’s seat as had been rumored. King may not even survive his re-election, though, what with a gambling-related federal investigation.

• CA-Gov: Got a spare $50 million sitting around? Meg Whitman does, and apparently that’s how much she’s willing to spend out-of-pocket on her quest to become the Golden State’s next governor.

• Demography (warning: big pdf): Ruy Teixeira comes through with yet more demographics-as-destiny wizardry. His new report on the state of the nation sees an America that’s no longer a majority white Christian nation within the next ten years (where four-fifths of growth is non-white), where culture war appeals have diminished force, and where the white working class becomes small enough to lose its iconic swing vote status.

So we are still about a year and a half away from the 2010 primary election and you must be thinking I’m insane. However, I indicated about a week ago that I was going to make an announcement early in my 2010 endorsement for the Alabama 7th Congressional District seat. Not only am I making an endorsement, but I am announcing to going to be working with  Shelia Smoot who  just formed a committee to be a candidate for the seat to be vacated by Artur Davis.

I’m telling everyone now so that they will know where I am coming from when I talk about this race or my candidate. I have found that I like it when bloggers are candid in their affiliations with candidates. So I am practicing what I preach.   Below the thread is more info on my candidate.  

Why Smoot?

I have known Shelia since 2001 and believe that she would be an excellent representative for the constituents of the 7th Congressional District. I find her to be concerned about all people and always willing to lend a helping hand. I’ve talked to people throughout the country that have stories about how Shelia helped them in some capacity.

She also will surround herself with competent people who understand the issues important to those in her community. She knows that transportation and infrastructure, health care, senior housing and creation of jobs are the most pressing of those issues in the 7th Congressional District.

I know several other candidates will likely announce and I welcome all of those to enter the race. I believe that it will be a spirited campaign that will be about how to improve the quality of life in the 7th Congressional District.

I know some of the other potential candidates and I genuinely like them. I think this will be an election with good options. I also have friends who will be working with some of the other candidates.

While not a factor in my choice, I also think it is time that we send the first African American Female to Congress. Alabama needs a female representative in Congress and Shelia Smoot has been a trailblazer throughout her career as a journalist and as a politician.

Our website is under construction, so please let me know if you have any questions or comments.  

It seems that SSP hero and Alabama Commissioner of Agriculture & Industries Ron Sparks has made up his mind on his 2010 plans — and it’ll be a run for Lt. Governor. From Doc’s Political Parlor:

Those close to state Agricultural Commissioner Ron Sparks hear that he is planning to announce next week his intention to run for Lt. Governor in 2010. One version of the story is that Sparks and current Lt. Governor Jim Folsom have discussed their plans for 2010 so as not to be competing in the same Democratic primaries.

So where does this leave Jim Folsom, the current Lt. Governor? Either retiring or making a run for the top job against Artur Davis in the Democratic primary.

Looks like we can soon dust off those Sparksmania stickers…

Alabama Agriculture Commissioner Ron Sparks is moving closer to a decision on which statewide office he’ll seek in 2010.

Sparks, a Democrat, said he has narrowed his options to the races for governor or lieutenant governor. He said he plans to announce his choice by mid-March.

“If I could run for ag commissioner again, I’d do it,” said Sparks, who is term-limited from running for re-election to that post. “But I do have a desire to continue serving the people of this state.”

Sparks apparently won’t wait on Lt. Gov. Jim Folsom to tip his hand. Folsom, also a Democrat, is expected to enter the 2010 race to replace Gov. Bob Riley. U.S. Rep. Artur Davis, D-Birmingham, announced his candidacy earlier this month.

Sparks ruled out speculation that he might challenge U.S. Sen. Richard Shelby, R-Tuscaloosa, who is up for re-election in 2010. Shelby’s campaign war chest – currently at more than $13 million – and his Senate seniority give him an overwhelming advantage over any potential challengers.

Brace yourselves.

Sorry, open seat fans:

U.S. Rep. Jo Bonner, R-Mobile, told the Press-Register today that he will not run for governor of Alabama in 2010, ending months of speculation over whether he would join a crowded field of candidates seeking to replace term-limited Gov. Bob Riley.

“After a lot of serious thought and consideration, as well as many heartfelt prayers, Janee and I have concluded that now is simply not the right time to launch a statewide campaign,” Bonner said.

Bonner nabbed a spot on the Appropriations Committee last year, which makes life in the minority a bit more palatable. And a few weeks ago, he earned some upgrades on his other assignments. In any event, this move scratches a name off of our open seat watch, but both the GOP and Dem gubernatorial fields are still up in the air.

Another unsurprising departure:

U.S. Rep. Artur Davis on Friday will declare his intention to seek the governorship of Alabama, sources close to the congressman confirm.  

The much-anticipated announcement marks the most serious bid ever launched by a black candidate to win the top office in a state that still observes Robert E. Lee and Jefferson Davis’ birthdays but that also gave rise to the civil rights movement that ended Jim Crow.

Sources close to the campaign said Davis, 41, will announce his intention to seek the Democratic Party nomination for governor at a midday event Friday in Birmingham, which he represents in Congress, followed by a late-afternoon event in his native Montgomery. He’ll kick off his campaign outside the state’s Archives, within sight of the first White House of the Confederacy and the Alabama Capitol, where that Confederacy was born 148 years ago Wednesday.

Ag Comm’r and SSP hero Ron Sparks, as well as Lt. Gov. Jim Folsom, are also considering runs for the Dems. Open seat fans, don’t fret – Obama won 79% of the vote in AL-07. In fact, this is a good opportunity to replace Davis with someone more progressive, in the mold, perhaps, of Steve Cohen replacing Harold Ford, Jr.

UPDATE: A Roll Call piece (h/t politicalal) lists some potential AL-07 candidates:

Of the several members of the state Legislature who have been mentioned as possible Davis replacements, the most intriguing may be state Rep. Earl Hilliard Jr. (D), the son of the former Congressman [whom Davis ousted in a primary in 2002]. …

Other Democratic state legislators whose names have been floated as possible candidates in the 7th include state Rep. Merika Coleman and state Sen. Rodger Smitherman, who both hail from Jefferson County, where Birmingham is located. State Sen. Bobby Singleton, whose senate district includes parts of Tuscaloosa and rural counties south and west, has also been mentioned. …

Birmingham attorney Terri Sewell, a longtime associate of Davis’ who attended Princeton University at the same time as first lady Michelle Obama, is expected to run in an open-seat race in the 7th.  …

Another candidate mentioned in Democratic circles is Sheila Smoot, a two-term Jefferson County commissioner who is also known for her work as a former television news anchor.

From the Montgomery Advertiser:

U.S. Rep. Artur Davis, D-Birmingham, is being vetted for an undisclosed position in president-elect Barack Obama’s administration, but he said he isn’t seeking a new job and doesn’t expect to be selected.

Davis, a three-term Democrat who attended Harvard Law School with Obama, said the transition team approached him several weeks ago and asked if he would undergo a background check. Davis’ office declined to say what position is being considered. Obama’s transition team, which has vetted dozens of potential nominees, declined to comment Friday.

“While I have agreed to allow the background check to go forward, I have not received any offer regarding this position and there are other extremely well-qualified candidates who are being considered by the president-elect,” Davis said in a written statement. “Candidly, I do not expect to receive any offer from the president-elect and I expect to serve in the United States Congress for one final term.”

The words “one final term” indicate pretty strongly that Davis is seriously considering a run for the open Governor’s office, and he doesn’t sound particularly interested in a job with the Obama Administration. In any case, we can probably expect to see a pretty crowded field develop for this D+17 seat when Artur leaves the building.

During each weekday this month, we’ll be looking at a new state featuring senatorial or gubernatorial races in 2010, and asking for your thoughts on who Democrats should recruit to take on these races.

Yesterday was Alaska, and today we turn our eyes to Alabama. Incumbent Republican Gov. Bob Riley is term-limited, and several Democrats of note are giving this race a look (notably, Agriculture Commissioner and SSP hero Ron Sparks, Lt. Gov. Jim Folsom, Jr., and Rep. Artur Davis).

On the Senate side, GOP Sen. Richard Shelby has yet to announce his re-election plans, but with $13 million in his campaign’s coffers, I highly doubt any Democrats of note will want to receive a pummeling by that kind of money. Still, Shelby will turn 76 in 2010, and a retirement is not out of the question. If that seat opened up, we could see a serious game of musical chairs up and down the ballot on both sides of the aisle.

So, whom should the Democrats recruit for these races? And whom might step forward from GOP bench for either of these races (assuming that Shelby retires)?