John Sharp Files Paperwork To Run For U.S. Senate
Thu, 01/01/2009 - 2:41pm
The Dallas Morning News reports this morning that former Comptroller John Sharp has filed paperwork to run for the U.S. Senate seat currently held by Senator Kay Bailey Hutchison in the 2010 cycle or in a special election after the 2010 cycle or when her term is up in 2012. Are those enough possibilities for you, dear readers?
From the article:
In a news release, Sharp announced that he had filed his campaign papers with the Federal Elections Commission. He also said he would work to halt Wall Street bailouts and focus instead on using emergency funds to give homeowners mortgage relief.
“The challenges we face at home and abroad demand innovative solutions, not politics as usual,” Sharp said. “Texans are looking for that kind of leadership.”
Hutchison, whose Senate term expires in 2012, has said she may leave the Senate as early as next year to campaign. She has formed an exploratory committee to run for governor in 2010. If she leaves her Senate seat before her term ends in 2012, the governor would appoint a replacement until a special election is held.
Recently, reports have surfaced indicating that Senator Hutchison is receiving advice from both Congressional Republicans and her broader community of friends and boosters to not resign her Senate seat until 2010 (h/t Vince @ Capitol Annex). This advice assumes that she does decide to run for Governor in 2010 (Senator Hutchison has already stated that she will serve through 2009 and then decide whether or not to resign and devote her full measure to campaigning), and it assumes she wins both the Republican primary and the general election.
The Houston Chronicle's Texas Politics blog has a rundown of some of the possible scenarios swirling around the 2010palooza that's worth a read and some consideration.
The decision tree on this matter needs some serious pruning, folks.
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Possibilities
By George Nassar
Thu, 01/01/2009 - 2:56pm
Kuffner has a rundown of the possibilities and how they could play out on his blog.
Grab Your Popcorn
By Patrick M McLeod
Sat, 01/03/2009 - 1:23pm
I thought we'd have to wait at least until this summer to start hearing news about the next election cycle, but thanks to this chaotic field of candidates and the various iterations of when the election might occur, we've got news now! When was the last time we had a top-tier candidate bypass the exploratory committee phase and file for a race that might not happen for two more cycles?
Bummer!
By Lorenzo Sadun
Sat, 01/03/2009 - 1:31pm
We have too many people running for a Senate seat that may not even open and not enough running for governor.
The senate election will be held at a time that suits the GOP, which makes a Democratic pickup extremely unlikely. Just ask Chris Bell or Jim Martin about special elections.
The governor's race will be tough, but even an unsuccessful run will help Democrats down-ballot. On the other hand, if we enter the 2010 race without a good gubernatorial candidate, we'll have a very hard time turning out voters.