Archive for the ‘Lieutenant Governor News’ Category

From the LA Times:

Steinberg cited the $2-million cost of the special election that would be required to fill Maldonado’s Senate seat, suggesting the money could be better spent scaling back recent fee hikes at state colleges and universities.

The Senate leader, under pressure to keep the post open for Democrats running for lieutenant governor themselves in next year’s election, also suggested he would like to see the job left vacant.

“It may be both fiscally and politically prudent to permit the people to make their own selection for this statewide office next year and avoid the expense of a costly special election,” his statement said.

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From the Nevada Appeal:

Adair heard more than an hour of arguments and squabbles Tuesday between prosecutors from the state attorney general’s office and attorneys for Krolicki and his chief of staff and co-defendant, Kathryn Besser.

Attorney General Catherine Cortez Masto offered to turn the prosecution over to a special prosecutor due to what Masto characterized as a personal conflict. Lawyers for Krolicki derided the offer.

“This is absolutely ridiculous,” Krolicki defense lawyer Richard Wright said, accusing the prosecution of a “dog ate my homework” delaying tactic on the eve of trial.

“We don’t accept the representations of how this came about,” he said. “It looks like a ‘Saturday Night Live’ skit to me.”

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From SFGate.com:

For the second time in his political career, Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger turned to talk show host Jay Leno to make a major announcement, this time nominating Sen. Abel Maldonado, R-Santa Maria (Santa Barbara County), as California’s next lieutenant governor Monday.

Leno asked the governor about the position, which was vacated nearly three weeks ago after Democrat John Garamendi won a seat in Congress, and Schwarzenegger said he would announce it on the show. Earlier Monday the governor’s spokesman Aaron McLear said the governor had not informed his staff of a decision.

Schwarzenegger famously surprised the nation when he announced on a Leno talk show in 2003 that he would run for governor in the recall election of then-Gov. Gray Davis.

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From Metrowest Daily News:

Republican gubernatorial candidate Charles Baker has selected Senate Minority Leader Richard Tisei as his running mate and was slated to make the official announcement this morning in Wakefield.

An outspoken critic of the Patrick administration, Tisei adds insider heft to Baker’s campaign, bringing with him 18 years of experience in the state Senate and six more before that in the House. Tisei is one of only five Republicans in the Senate and his run for lieutenant governor would open up the seat he has long held.

“He’s a very tenacious campaigner, a good campaigner,” said House Minority Leader Brad Jones. “He’s never lost an election. If you look at Richard’s district, it runs the gamut of cities to suburbs, from affluent to less affluent. It’s a great sort of microcosm of the state.”

Jones questioned the outsider approach that Gov. Deval Patrick, who intends to run for re-election with Lt. Gov. Tim Murray, brought to public office, listing the lawmakers – Reps. Doug Peterson, Mike Festa, Jim Leary, Bob Coughlin and Dan Bosley, as well as Sen. Marian Walsh – that Patrick either placed in his administration or sought to.

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From the Badger Herald:

Dane County Executive Kathleen Falk will not be a Democratic candidate for lieutenant governor in 2010, a campaign aide said Tuesday.

Since Milwaukee Mayor Tom Barrett was rumored as a candidate for the 2010 gubernatorial race, which was confirmed by his declaration of candidacy on Sunday, Falk has been mentioned as a possible running mate.

However, Falk Campaign Manager Melissa Mulliken said while fellow Democrats have encouraged Falk to run for lieutenant governor, Falk would rather maintain her focus on her work as Dane County executive.

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From The Times Argus:

The Democrats’ lack of a declared candidate for the office of lieutenant governor continues, but there are several possible contenders for the nomination.

The latest is Rep. Steve Howard, D-Rutland City, who said Wednesday he may enter the race.

“I have been encouraged to consider it,” Howard said in response to questions. “I am actively considering it, but I haven’t come to any conclusion about whether I will do it.”

Howard, who is on the House Ways and Means Committee, has been in the Legislature for a dozen years over two different stretches and two House districts. In his first stint in the Statehouse he represented Rutland Town.

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From SFGate:

“Right now you can shoot a cannon … and not hit anyone,” said Beth Willon, spokeswoman for the office.

It is not only a result of John Garamendi, D-Walnut Grove, winning a seat in Congress and leaving the post two weeks ago, but also due to deep budget cuts to the office since February.

Now, as Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger weighs the naming of a successor to Garamendi, long-standing questions about whether the state needs a lieutenant governor are again percolating. Not filling the position would save the financially struggling state just under $160,000 a year.

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