Politics

(AP) Gov. Tim Pawlenty's departure from the 2010 race for Minnesota governor set off a scramble Tuesday among possible Republican candidates for the job.

There's already a long list of prominent Democrats running or thinking about it, and setting up the most wide-open race in years. "There's been a boatload of Republicans who have been waiting to see what the governor is going to do," said state Sen. Geoff Michel, R-Edina, who said he might run.

Six other Minnesota Republicans said Tuesday they're thinking about getting in: House Minority Leader Marty Seifert of Marshall, state Sen. David Hann of Eden Prairie, state Rep. Paul Kohls of Victoria, former state auditor Pat Anderson, former U.S. Sen. Rod Grams and Charlie Weaver, Pawlenty's former chief of staff.

After Pawlenty's announcement, a quartet of top legislative Republicans including Seifert, Hann, Senate Minority Leader David Senjem of Rochester and Sen. Michelle Fischbach of Paynesville held an impromptu news conference. When asked to raise their hands if they were out of the running, none did.

Also high on the GOP list of possibilities are former House Speaker Steve Sviggum, state Rep. Laura Brod of New Prague and businessman and GOP activist Brian Sullivan, who in 2002 lost a tight party endorsement battle to Pawlenty. Sviggum and Sullivan did not immediately return phone messages from The Associated Press, while Brod said she hadn't made any decision.

Former U.S. Rep. Jim Ramstad is also a potential candidate; he issued a statement praising Pawlenty but saying nothing about his plans.

"You're going to see a lot of big names seeing if they have a natural base of support, and I imagine there could also be a serious candidate or two that hasn't occurred to anyone yet," said Tom Horner, a PR executive and former GOP strategist.

Even before Pawlenty bowed out, a number of high-profile Democrats had taken steps toward the 2010 race. They are state Sen. Tom Bakk, former U.S. Sen. Mark Dayton, Ramsey County Attorney Susan Gaertner, former state Sen. Steve Kelley, former House Minority Leader Matt Entenza, state Sen. John Marty and state Rep. Paul Thissen. House Speaker Margaret Anderson Kelliher of Minneapolis and state Sen. Tarryl Clark of St. Cloud are also seen as a potential candidates.

All those hopefuls make it more likely both parties will have contested primaries.

"This could be a test of how far right the Republicans want to go, how far left the Democrats want to go and whether we see other candidates who want to pull them back to the center," Horner said.

While Minnesota is seen as a left-leaning state, Democrats have not held the governor's office since the late Rudy Perpich left office in 1990. Complicating matters has been the Independence Party, which emerged as a player with Jesse Ventura's 1998 election as governor and has since fielded candidates that chipped off significant portions of the vote.

Minnesota Republicans have seen heavy election losses the last few cycles, and Democratic contenders have had several more months to prepare for the campaign. But the Republican candidate will be able to argue that the governor's office is the only remaining check on total DFL dominance in the state.

State DFL chairman Brian Melendez said Pawlenty's decision helps Democratic candidates. He said whoever ends up as the party's choice can run on the same message that's been successful for many legislative candidates the last few years. He said the two key goals would be restoring lost jobs and returning the state's budget to a permanently healthy footing.

"We've been preparing for a year now to run against Pawlenty," Melendez said. "Now we're going to be running against someone with much less experience. I think our prospects were good before, I think they're great now."

Pawlenty declined to pick a favorite but said he will work to have a Republican succeed him. He said he timed his announcement in part to allow enough time for a competitive campaign. The window is smaller than it might appear 17 months before the November 2010 election, because a key step happens with precinct caucuses in early February.

Chris Georgacas, a Republican strategist and former state party chairman, predicted the 2010 race would be a referendum on the Obama administration, Democratic control of Congress and DFL leadership in the Legislature.

Georgacas said serious contenders would have to decide by September. Out of deference to Pawlenty, most of the potential candidates declined Tuesday to talk in detail about their plans -- but a few indicated they'll make big decisions soon. Seifert said he'd have a "newsworthy announcement" on Wednesday.

Hann, the Eden Prairie state senator, said any candidate would have trouble following a candidate with Pawlenty's political skill.

"He's a tough act to follow," Hann said.

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Pawlenty was elected in 2002 in a tight three-way contest between Democrat Roger Moe and Independent Tim Penny. Pawlenty won re-election in 2006 against Mike Hatch in what was again a very tight race.

 

(© 2009 CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. The Associated Press contributed to this report.)