Now I can say that a member of President-Elect Obama's cabinet once endorsed a client of mine. So... uh... that's kind of weird.
Anyway, with Ken Salazar headed to Interior, that creates a pretty crazy situation for 2010. Governor Ritter gets to appoint his replacement, and at the top of the list are Mayor John Hickenlooper, Rep. John Salazar, Rep. Diana DeGette and Speaker Andrew Romanoff.
No matter who Ritter appoints, it makes the Salazar senate seat much more competitive in 2010. With few pickup opportunities out there, the NRSC is going to have to have Colorado pretty high on its target list anyway. This, however, puts the seat even more "in play." Instead of having to run against a six-year incumbent who has run and won statewide (Salazar), the Republican nominee will be running against a two-year, appointed incumbent running statewide for the first time.
That makes the Senate run much more appealing for potential Republican candidates. Attorney General John Suthers and U.S. Attorney Troy Eid have both made it clear that they're interested, but I don't think the slate is full yet. (Former Reps Scott McInnis and Tom Tancredo? John Elway? A younger face like Rep. Cory Gardner?)
With Suthers running for Senate, the AG seat opens up. Expect Weld County District Attorney Ken Buck to run for AG, removing him from speculation about a run against Betsy Markey in the 4th CD.
In the 4th CD, we'll probably see a three- or four-way primary including CU Regent Tom Lucero, Rep. Cory Gardner, Fort Collins City Councilmember Diggs Brown and possibly former State Senator and Treasurer Mark Hillman.
However, Hillman might run for Secretary of State against newly-appointed Bernie Buescher who Ritter chose to fill the seat vacated by new Congressman Mike Coffman. Once again, Buescher has never run statewide. Hillman has, narrowly losing his race for Treasurer in 2006.
One more wrinkle - if Ritter chooses Rep. John Salazar to fill his younger brother's Senate seat, that opens up Colorado's 3rd Congressional District - a district that actually slightly favors Republicans. Would a high-profile Republican from the 3rd seize on the opportunity to go to Congress? Probably.
Oh, and did I mention that there's also a race for Governor in 2010? Senator Josh Penry and Rep. Don Marostica have been mentioned as possible candidates, along with Tancredo and McInnis.
Then there's John Elway. (And possibly John Lynch?)
Musical chairs indeed, with a lot of new faces in a lot of competitive races.
