Tag: TN-Gov

Roll Call:

Tennessee Rep. Lincoln Davis (D) closed the door Thursday evening on the possibility of making a gubernatorial run in 2010, a move he had been considering.

In a statement, Davis cited his recent appointment to the Appropriations Committee as a key reason behind his decision.

At the very least, this means that Republicans won’t get to take an easy crack at Davis’ conservative TN-04 CD — its old PVI was R+3, but Obama absolutely cratered in the district, taking only 34% of the vote, compared to 41% for John Kerry in 2004 and a remarkable 49% for Al Gore in 2000.

With Davis keeping his perch in the House, the field is now clear for… well, Harold Ford, Jr., I guess. Another possible name who may be convinced to take a crack at the race is state Sen. Andy Berke.

Governor Phil Bredesen of Tennessee will be term-limited out of office in two years, meaning that we could see spirited primaries on both sides of the fence for the opportunity to win the state’s top job.

On the Republican side, a number of names have emerged, including U.S. Rep. Zach Wamp, Shelby Co. District Attorney Bill Gibbons, and Knoxville Mayor Bill Haslam.

Lincoln Davis and Harold Ford, Jr. have been the Democrats with the most buzz around their potential candidacies, but if it were up to you, who would you like to see run for the job?

Roll Call:

Rep. Zach Wamp (R) announced Monday morning that he would run for governor in Tennessee in 2010, creating an open House seat in what should be a safe Republican district.

The decision by the seven-term Congressman came one day after former Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist (R-Tenn.) announced he would not seek the gubernatorial post. Since then, the Republican field has opened up and Wamp’s name had been mentioned along with Memphis District Attorney Bill Gibbons and Knoxville Mayor Bill Haslam.

According to The Hill, Gibbons has also thrown his hat into the ring, ensuring a chance at some nice primary fireworks here. (For more on the contours of the GOP’s internal battle lines, check out this piece from the Nashville Post.)  And as David notes below, open seat fans should probably not get their hopes up over the vacancy in Wamp’s R+9 district.

Wamp’s retirement brings the number of confirmed Republican open seats up to three (Pete Hoekstra in MI-02 and Jerry Moran in KS-01 being the other two), but none of these seats could be called low-hanging fruit for Democrats by any means.

Kitty Kevorkian is out:

Former U.S Senator Bill Frist announced late Sunday evening that he would not be a candidate for governor of Tennessee in 2010. Frist issued a statement to the Associated Press stating that “After significant reflection and conversations with loved ones, I have decided to remain a private citizen for the foreseeable future.”

The move by Frist dramatically opens up the Republican field, as a number of GOP gubernatorial aspirants had said that they would not make the race had Frist run.

Among those who have said that they would likely run now with Frist out is Congressman Zach Wamp of Chattanooga, District Attorney Bill Gibbons of Memphis, and Knoxville Mayor Bill Haslam.

Dem Gov. Phil Bredesen is term-limited, so this will be an open seat in 2010. I would have enjoyed seeing the hapless Frist flail about in a gubernatorial run, but at least now we will probably see a competitive GOP primary – the link cited above says Haslan and Gibbons are likely to get in with Frist gone.

Wamp, meanwhile, has always struck me as an up-and-comer in the House GOP caucus (he’s on Appropriations & he also tried to run for Majority Whip not that long ago), so I’d be a bit surprised if he jumped ship. Then again, things look awfully bleak for Republicans on the Hill, and if guys like Adam Putnam are looking to bail, then maybe Wamp is, too. Don’t get too excited about his TN-03 seat, though – it’s R+9, and I’m sure Obama did very poorly there.