Fuller announces -- accidentally -- her state Senate run
| Thursday, Feb 04 2010 11:10 PM
Last Updated Friday, Feb 05 2010 11:41 AM
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Assemblywoman Jean Fuller, R-Bakersfield
Did Jean Fuller call the wrong Bob Price?
She's running for state Senate, by the way.
Bakersfield's Republican Assemblywoman left a voice mail message on the cell phone of The Californian's Opinion Page Editor, Robert Price, late Thursday afternoon.
"Hi Bob and Sandy. This is Jean Fuller, and I just want to tell you first that I'm going to announce tomorrow that I'm running for the Senate... ."
Californian reporters immediately tried to reach Fuller on her cell phone, by e-mail and through her staff, to no avail, in order to confirm her run.
That's when the mysterious reference to "Sandy" in Fuller's message became a clue. There's no one named Sandy in the newsroom.
Perhaps Fuller thought she was calling another Bob Price: Bakersfield's former mayor, whose wife is named Sandy?
Fuller is holding a press conference at 1 p.m. today to announce her -- until now -- closely guarded political plans.
Speculation has been all over the map: she'll retire from politics, run again for Assembly or, as she has previously hinted, go for the 18th District state Senate seat that termed-out Roy Ashburn is leaving.
The 18th recently turned from a snoozefest to a thriller when Ed Jagels, Kern County's district attorney, said he's seriously considering a go.
We don't know yet whether there'll be a Fuller/Jagels match up. But Jagels said on Wednesday Fuller's decision would impact his.
"It's certainly something I would seriously consider," he said of the possible face-off. "I have a lot of respect for Jean Fuller."
It might be 10 days or more before we know what Jagels will do. For now, though, one big name has committed to the 18th.
Unless, of course, Fuller was just faking us out? Hmmm.
