Radanovich To Retire
By Reid Wilson
Rep. George Radanovich (R-CA) will announce he will not seek a 9th term in a statement to be released this afternoon, 2 GOP sources confirms to Hotline OnCall.
First elected in '94 when he beat then-Rep. Richard Lehman (D), Radanovich moved to a senior position on the Energy & Commerce Committee, where he is the top GOPer on the Commerce, Trade and Consumer Protection subcommittee.
Radanovich never faced a serious Dem challenger after beating Lehman with 57% in '94. But he may have faced a strong GOPer this year, thanks to opponents unhappy with his stance on water issues, a critical concern in the oft-parched Central Valley.
One source said Radanovich will back state Sen. Jeff Denham (R) as his replacement. CA Senate districts are actually larger than congressional districts, though Denham's is more closely related to Rep. Dennis Cardoza's (D) neighboring 18th district. Top GOPers had tried to convince Denham to run against Cardoza, though Radanovich's district has a stronger GOP lean.
But Denham is unlikely to get a clean shot at the seat. Fresno Mayor Jim Patterson (R), who had backing from the Club for Growth during his '02 primary against now-Rep. Devin Nunes (R), is also likely to run. One source even suggested that ex-Rep. Richard Pombo (R), who lost his neighboring 11th district to Rep. Jerry McNerney (D) in '06, may be a potential contender as well.
The seat, which takes in half of Fresno and extends to the northern suburbs of Modesto, is not likely to cause GOPers a lot of headaches. Sen. John McCain (R-AZ) won the district with 52% in '08, but Pres. Bush took it with 61% in '04.
But he is the latest in a string of GOPers to say they will not run again, a development that could undermine GOP claims that the party is set to take back the House. GOPers pointed to retirement announcements from Reps. Brian Baird (D-WA), Bart Gordon (D-TN), Dennis Moore (D-KS) and John Tanner (D-TN) as evidence that Dems find themselves in political hot water in advance of the '10 elections.
Meanwhile, DCCC chair Chris Van Hollen pointed out on Fox News Sunday this weekend that more GOPers, 13, are retiring than Dems, who so far have 11 members saying no thanks to another term. But GOPers remain optimistic that, unlike Radanovich's seat, those held by Baird, Tanner, Gordon and Moore give them more electoral opportunities.
This was interesting.