| Senate
Nebraska: Former Senator Bob Kerrey (D) moved from New York to Nebraska to run for his old job in the Senate. Now we find Kerrey's return home was short-lived; he is taking a job in San Francisco with a higher education outfit.
Kentucky: We noted Senator Rand Paul's 19-year-old son was charged with public intoxication recently. Apparently, the son was also charged with assaulting a female flight attendant.
Arkansas: An update on the chances of Reps. Steve Womack or Tom Cotton (R) running against Senator Mark Pryor (D) this cycle. Womack’s chief of staff, Beau Walker, said in an email that the congressman was focused on his job “and not yet thinking of anything beyond that.” Insiders aren’t sure whether Womack has genuine interest in giving up his safe House seat, and many expect him to forgo a Senate run. “I know Tom Cotton is being heavily recruited now,” the plugged-in Arkansas Republican said. “He is reluctant because he just got to the House. But, at the end of the day, he has answered the call of duty before, and I think he’ll answer it again.” Cotton’s chief of staff, Doug Coutts, said he had no comment on the Senate bid speculation.
Georgia: Wedged at the end of a recent interview with Senator Saxby Chambliss (R):
“This is an eight-year decision for me. It’s two years [campaigning] plus six years” in office, he said. “And if I thought the next eight years were going to be filled with contentious debates and the wrong way to govern that we have just gone through in the last two months, it would have a significant impact on my decision. But yeah, right now my plans are to run.”
The important part, as Jim Galloway notes, is the qualifier: he has decided to run "right now." Governor
Idaho: Rep. Raul Labrador (R) is considering a gubernatorial bid in 2014.
"Right now, my number one priority is doing something about immigration," Labrador told me Friday. "And it will help me -- seeing how things are in Washington. Whether we can get something done or not is going to be instrumental in helping me make my decision. It's going to be one of the keys. And I know people don't believe me -- they think I've already made a decision -- but it's not something I wake up every morning and think about. I know other people do, for some reason."
Governor Butch Otter (R) has previously said he plans to run for re-election. Lt. Gov. Brad Little is speculated to run if Otter does step aside in the end (while a third term for Otter would be legal, it would not be customary). Labrador may do well with a pivot from Congress. The sophomore is currently engaged in a very public battle with his fellow veteran Rep. from Idaho, Mike Simpson (R), after his vote against Speaker Boehner.
New Jersey: Former Governor and State Senator Dick Codey (D) is travelling to Washington to solicit funds for a gubernatorial bid. Apparently Codey wants to line up $20 million in commitments before officially entering the race. Of course, State Senator Barbara Buono (D) is already in the race, and she is working to capitalize on her early organizing with local Democrats.
Virginia: White House party crasher and all-around wealthy weirdo Tareq Salahi is finally giving up the idea of winning the GOP nod to run for Governor... and instead gathering petitions to run as an independent.
House
SC-01: Jenny Sanford, former First Lady of South Carolina, has confirmed that she will not run for Congress in the upcoming special election, meaning there will only be one Sanford, her ex-husband, in the race.
IL-02: An internal poll of the special election Democratic primary from State Senator Toi Hutchinson by Normington Petts has former Rep. Debbie Halvorsen at 16%, Hutchinson at 12%, Robin Kelly 8%, Napoleon Harris 7%, Anthony Beale 7%, and former Rep. Mel Reynolds 5%. Of course, Halvorsen ran a full-fledged Democratic primary campaign in this seat last cycle, so one might have expected her to perform stronger. Instead, over 40% of voters in the sample are undecided (with all of the usual caveats about this being an internal poll) Miscellaneous
AK-leg: State Rep. Lindsey Holmes is switching from the Democratic Party to the GOP. The switch gives the GOP a 30-10 super majority in the House.
KS-leg: Outgoing State Senator Jean Schodorf switched her party affiliation from Republican to Democrat shortly her successor, Michael O'Donnell, took office. The conservative O'Donnell successfully primaried Schodorf, one of a number of moderates defeated in State Senate primaries last cycle.
TX-leg: A handy, one-stop resource to locate potential conflicts of interest among Texas state legislators from the excellent data team at the Texas Tribune.
More Texas: George P. Bush raised $1.3 million in just eight weeks as he looks toward a run for statewide office, likely the open Land Commissioner seat. Among the donors are the prominent Bushes- Jeb, George W, and George HW.
|
