Welcome to Washington's 6th Congressional District Sweepstakes, the once in a lifetime chance for Olympic Peninsula-ish politicians to win an all-expense-paid trip to our nation's capital! And the earlier favorite among political know-it-alls to succeed Representative Norm Dicks (D-Appropriations) following his surprise retirement announcement, is state Senator Derek Kilmer (D-Gig Harbor).
"He's seriously considering it," Kilmer consultant John Wyble confirmed by phone.
No surprise there. Kilmer, only 38, has been on the fast path in Olympia since first winning election to the state House in 2004, and has proven both a formidable legislator and fundraiser. Dicks has held onto this congressional seat since 1976—when Kilmer was only two years old—so if Kilmer has any ambition of serving in the other Washington, it very well may be now or never.
Other state senators whose names are being bandied about are Christine Rolfes (D-Bainbridge Island) and Jim Hargrove (SortaD-Hoquiam), both of whom are up for reelection this year, and thus would have to sacrifice their current seats in order to run, unlike Kilmer, whose four-year term isn't up until 2014. Other names I'm hearing are Tacoma City Councilmember Mayor Marilyn Strickland and former state House Majority Leader Lynne Kessler.
As for Dicks' son, David, once presumed the dynastic heir apparent, it's hard to imagine him taking a crack at the seat so soon after his scandal-marred tenure as executive director of the Puget Sound Partnership. The timing just doesn't seem right.
Oh yeah. I guess there has to be a Republican candidate too, in what without Dicks' incumbency is in truth only a lean Democratic district.
"Jan Angel would prevail against any Democrat," Mainstream Republicans of Washington executive director Alex Hayes confidently predicts in regard to the Republican state representative from Port Orchard. Her advantages? She fits the district, and she's a woman, according to Hayes. But then, this is a guy who genuinely believes that there is still such a thing as a "mainstream Republican," so I take his prognostications with a grain of salt.
