LACARTHY, Rodd. -- Former Roddenshire Attorney General Andrew Martinek (N) announced today that he will seek the state's governorship next year.
Martinek previously served as Attorney General, a position he held until January 2021, after being narrowly defeated by Conservative Scott Bracken.
At age 44, the young Nationalist from Lacarthy remains the NAT's top candidate to reclaim the governor's mansion from Conservative Gov. Jon Cortano.
Martinek had long been rumored to be considering a run for governor, but he waited to announce his campaign until former Gov. Mona Rodgers (N) deferred.
Rodgers is set to be nominated by President Jim McCaren for federal Secretary of State, opening what is likely to be a clear path for NAT's gubernatorial nomination for Martinek.
At a press conference on the steps of the Earl E. Manion Federal Courthouse in Lacarthy, where he began his career as a deputy federal prosecutor, Martinek said he is running for governor because leadership is lacking under the current administration. He placed particular fault on the incumbent Cortano for failing to reach an agreement with Damoign's state government on building a bridge to span Naylin Bay.
"The Cortano-Chen administration has had three years to get a bridge planned, they haven't done it. They promised to get traffic congestion under control and they haven't. They promised better test scores in our public schools and they haven't delivered on it. On issue after issue, the Cortano-Chen administration has failed," said Martinek.
In place of the current policies, he promised to increase funding for alternative public transportation and state schools. And he pledged to reach an agreement with neighboring Damoign on a bridge within 90 days of taking office.
No other Nationalists have announced a campaign for governor yet, although former federal Sen. Vince Montimado and former Lt. Gov. Peter Orr have not ruled out running.
The Cortano campaign panned Martinek's announcement, calling it 'ironic' that the former Attorney General chose a courthouse to unveil his campaign.
"It's ironic that Andrew Martinek chose the steps of a federal courthouse to announce his campaign for governor, considering he has never taken a tough stance on criminals during his career. As a prosecutor, Andrew Martinek almost always offered violent criminals shorter sentences than they deserved or the law allowed. He made plea agreements with some of the most dangerous criminals on the streets. And he downplayed and overlooked violent crime as Attorney General. He even supported releasing dangerous felons from prison earlier than they were scheduled to be released," said the Cortano campaign statement.
"Andrew Martinek is a criminal's best friend," it added.
It is true Martinek did offer plea agreements and shorter sentences to convicted criminals during his tenure as a prosecutor. It's also true he did support the release of some convicted felons, including some who were convicted of serious crimes against persons. However, Martinek justified those actions by saying each case had mitigating circumstances, and that the accused and convicted showed remorse for their crimes and hopes for rehabilitation.
A new poll released by the University of Roddenshire shows Martinek leading Cortano in a hypothetical match up. The poll finds Martinek receiving 50.8% to Cortano's 48.0%, with 1.2% choosing a minor party or write-in candidate. The margin of error is +/- three points.
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