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Obama, Clinton seats up for grabs
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Gov. Blagojevich, photo courtesy of the AP
Barring President-elect Barack Obama selecting another Senator for a cabinet post, there remain two Senate seats awaiting Governor-appointed replacements; one that was previously held by Obama himself and one held by Secretary of State-delegate Hillary Clinton.
The replacements for the Illinois and New York seats will be hand picked by Democratic Governors Rod Blagojevich and David Paterson, respectively.
While the hype around the Clinton seat has been the possibility of Caroline Kennedy being tapped to fill the seat, the short list appears to be dwindling down to, as I noted weeks ago, to Andrew Cuomo.
Other candidates still in consideration include:
Rep. Carolyn Maloney, Rep. Kirsten Gillibrand, Rep. Nydia Velazquez, Bronx borough President Adolfo Carrion, Rep. Brian Higgins and Buffalo mayor Byron Brown.
The odds on favorite is New York Attorney General Andrew Cuomo.
In Illinois, all eyes are on the incredibly unpopular (13% approval rating) Governor Rod Blagojevich to replace the next President.
Politco is reporting that the top five contenders for the slot are:
Tammy Duckworth: The Director of the Illinois Department of Veterans Affairs and Iraq War Vet. According to Politco, she is the favorite of both Senate Majority Whip Dick Durbin and Obama Chief of Staff Rahm Emanuel.
Emil Jones: President of the Illinois State Senate and one of the Governor's few allies. Jones is also a mentor of Barack Obama.
Jesse Jackson Jr.: A Congressman from Illinois and son of activist Jesse Jackson. Jackson raised some eyebrows after a great speech at the 2008 Democratic National Convention but might be too divisive a figure to elevate into the Senate just yet.
Danny Davis: A six-term Congressman from Illinois and former Chicago Councilman as well as a favorite of Governor Blagojevich.
Lisa Madigan: Illinois Attorney General and daughter of Illinois House Speaker Michael Madigan.
Because Obama had been the only African-American Senator in Congress, there is some pressure on Blagojevich to appoint an African-American. The two favorites for the slot appear to be Davis and Jones. Davis, however, might be too divisive and not have the ability to win an election in 2010 when he will have to defend his seat. While Davis might be the Governor's favorite, Jones would be the best and the likely pick.
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