Today’s installment of campaign-related news items that wouldn’t generate a post of their own, but may be of interest to political observers:<\/p>\n
* Everyone’s favorite theocrat, disgraced former judge Roy Moore, announced yesterday<\/a> that he will challenge Gov. Bob Riley in a Republican gubernatorial primary next year. Moore said he didn’t plan to move his granite Ten Commandments display from private church property to state property if elected, but added<\/a> that he would “defend the right of every citizen of this state — including judges, coaches, teachers, city, county and state officials — to acknowledge God as the sovereign source of law, liberty and government.” Two Democrats, Lt. Gov. Lucy Baxley and former Gov. Don Siegelman, are already running. The primaries are scheduled for June 6.<\/p>\n * In another failure in Republican recruiting efforts, Rep. Shelley Moore Capito (R-W.Va.) has announced that she will not take on<\/a> Sen. Robert Byrd (D) next year, despite pressure from the White House and the NRSC. Capito will instead seek re-election to the House. West Virginia University basketball coach Gale Catlett and West Virginia Secretary of State Betty Ireland are among the Republicans party officials are eyeing for the race.<\/p>\n * In Ohio, Paul Hackett announced yesterday that he will challenge<\/a> Sen. Mike DeWine (R) next year, following weeks of recruiting efforts from party leaders.<\/p>\n * Complicating the Ohio picture is Rep. Sherrod Brown (D). Party leaders asked Brown for months to consider the race and indicted that he might run. But, as he’s done in previous cycles, Brown backed out<\/a> of the race in August, prompting Dems to rally behind Hackett. And now that Hackett is in the race, Brown is having second thoughts, with his office telling the Washington Post<\/a> that the lawmaker’s previous statement “has not changed at this time.”<\/p>\n * As if Rep. Katherine Harris’ (R-Fla.) Senate campaign didn’t have enough trouble, her fundraising suffered<\/a> over the third quarter. Campaign Manager Jim Dornan blamed Hurricane Katrina for the setback. Harris reportedly raised $500,000 during the period from July 1 to Sept. 30, leaving her with $250,000 in the bank.<\/p>\n