It looks like Tennessee Democrats have their gubernatorial nominee settled out:
Former Tennessee state House Majority Leader Kim McMillan announced Wednesday she is ending her bid for the Democratic governor nomination, clearing the field for businessman Mike McWherter, and instead entering the Clarksville mayoral race.
McMillan’s departure had been rumored around the Volunteer state after a recent poll showed she would be competitive should she run for mayor in her hometown. […]
“I believe I can make a difference as Mayor of Tennessee’s 5th largest city,” McMillan concluded.
McMillan’s exit leaves business Mike McWherter, the son of ex-Gov. Ned McWherter, as the presumptive Democratic nominee. McWherter recently pledged to put in $1 million of his own money into the race, and, very pleasantly, is taking a non-bullshit approach on healthcare reform:
McWherter called the health care overhaul signed by Democratic President Barack Obama last week “the law of the land,” and criticized Republicans for urging the state to join a lawsuit seeking to block the law.
“Access to affordable, adequate health care is something that every Tennessean ought to have,” McWherter said. “And this should not be an issue that we politically grandstand about.”
McWherter will have to face the winner of a three-way Republican primary between Rep. Zach Wamp, Knoxville Mayor Bill Haslam, state Senate Speaker Ron Ramsey.
McWherter sounds like my kind of guy, which almost necessarily means he’s not Tennessee’s kind of guy.
Ned McWherter was a very two governor who’s tenure ended in 1995, so that buys him a little something. I think he has a chance if the Republican candidate is Zach Wamp, then he’ll have the outsider candidate thing working for him.
Also, technically Ron Ramsey is the Lieutenant Governor.
Among the Republican candidates? I don’t know enough about TN politics to know….but who should Team Blue fear the most?
No-bullshit sons of popular former governors who can stand up for themselves play well in that part of the world, especially against an empty suit like Zach Wamp. (Also, Wamp represents the hillbilly part of Tennessee. I doubt he’ll play well in Nashville or Memphis.)
I’m hoping McWherter is another Mike Beebe, and the fact that he can self-fund really doesn’t hurt. I was pretty pessimistic about this race given the erosion of Obama’s numbers in Appalachia compared to Kerry, but it looks like it might get pulled out of the fire after all. Here’s hoping.
Without seeing any polls or anything I feel like McWherter has a pretty good chance if Wamp wins the primary just because he has a really attactive profile and the ability to self finance. Also, GA, SC and AL are competitive for GOV when the approval numbers for Obama aren’t great for any of these states and I don’t see Democrats losing any Congressional seats in any of these states. Everything except for TN 06 looks alright for Dems honestly in TN as well.
Haslam, if i remember correctly, is very well connected (and, at the same time – isn’t an insider like Wamp), has money and closer to “moderate” (by modern Tennessee standards that’s not too much, but still..) wing of Tennessee Republican party. So, if he wins primary – he is, probably, THE most formidable candidate. But that same qualities may create numerous problems for him in winger-dominated primary.
The clearing of the field for Mike McWherter, along with his one million dollar self-endorsement, will go along way in making him more competitive this fall. In addition he can rely on the remnants of his father’s political machine, esp. any in-roads that remain in East Tennessee. However, he is not his father, who had built up decades of political capital statewide as the House Speaker, nor does Mike possess the charisma and persona of a farm-boy from Palmersville “made good” that his father used to great advantage to relate to the average voter.
Mike is by far the best candidate we could field, but this will be a historically rough year for the Tennessee Democratic Party.