Wednesday, April 24, 2013

Wynmyer will not seek Carova governorship

PORT BAY, Carova -- She says she's "honored and humbled" to be considered a candidate in the 2014 Carova governor's race, but former Democratic-Reformist Sen. Julie Wynmyer will not run for the state's top job, she announced Wednesday.

In an interview with the Carova Statesman, Wynmyer said she is flattered that people have asked and urged her to challenge Conservative Gov. Sam Byelle, but she is not interested in the position.

"It's very flattering, but this is not the right time or the right position for me," Wynmyer told reporter Peter Mahern.

"Right now, I'm enjoying spending time with my family and my grandchildren, and I'm finding other ways to serve the people of Carova," Wynmyer said.

Some of Wynmyer's recent activities include being elected President of the Carova Plant Society and gaining a seat on the governing committee of the Folman Group, an advocacy group that seeks to end homelessness in Carova.

Wynmyer even buried the hatchet with former Senate opponent, Nationalist Becki Salmon--whom she ran against in the 2012 election--and Wynmyer is now serving on the board of the pro-environment group Carova Wildscape, which Salmon co-founded.

"We sat down and talked and realized that we don't agree on everything, but we do agree on a lot, and that's something we can unite on and find common ground. We had a great discussion over lunch and she invited me to be apart of her group," Wynmyer said of Salmon.

"I'm very busy, but I'm very happy at this point in my life," Wynmyer told the Statesman. "I'm not going to close the door on politics altogether, but I don't believe the 2014 gubernatorial race is one that I'm interested in."

Wynmyer's pass at the governor's race is good news for both Sam Byelle and the state Nationalist party, as a Wynmer Democratic-Reformist candidacy would have likely resulted in a three-way race, which would expectedly have siphoned votes from both the CNS and the NAT candidates.

But Nationalists still have an uphill climb against Byelle. The first-term governor has healthy approval ratings hovering around 60%, and his populist message resonates with the common-sense voters of the Northern Frontier.

However, some prominent Nationalists are said to be considering a challenge to Byelle. Most notably: Sen. Dan Sallovich, who has openly expressed interest in the governorship.

Lorenzi Mayor Anna Madde-Maas and freshman Attorney General Dan McGregor are also said to be mulling a run.

Former lieutenant governor Carson Latzo, who made a political comeback last year when he was elected to the National Assembly after a 2008 drunken-driving scandal, was considering running for governor, but decided against it.

Latzo is now expected to announce his candidacy for mayor of Carlingford in the November 2013 election.

Last week, uncertainty about Byelle's future reached a climax, after an unnamed source within the governor's office told the Statesman Byelle was going to retire instead of running for a second term.

But Byelle cleared up all doubt over the weekend, when he announced he will seek re-election in the 2014 election.

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