At 5:52 am a CT Alert crossed the Associated Press wire that Attorney General Richard Blumenthal will seek to replace Chris Dodd in the 
U.S. Senate. Blumenthal is expected to announce today at 2:30PM at the Democratic Party Headquarters in Hartford.
Trust us – this is going to be almost as hot a race as that of US Senate or Governor. Does Dan Malloy peel off from the Governor’s race and seek the AG job? Does Susan Bysiewicz, known to have coveted the job, consider doing the same (despite her strong poll numbers for Governor)? Does George Jepsen, who has waited for years for Blumenthal to make a move, try to get back in the game?
Newsrooms across the state are (presumably) thinking about how to beef up their political coverage despite depleted staffs, and TV and radio general managers are estimating the political ad dollars that will soon be streaming in the doors…
Susan has never coveted the AG job – it was always just a fall back from Gov to move up and out of SOTS
On those ad dollars: One issue worth investigating is whether or not publicly financed statewide campaigns will have enough money to get their message out.
I remember just how expensive political ads were in 2006 when a hot senate race, three hot house races, and a gubernatorial were all competing for airtime. TV rates were through the roof by October. Federal campaigns can try to raise more to compensate, but state candidates cannot.
Publicly financed gubernatorial candidates in the general election will get $3 million (plus the $250k they have to raise) and only $1 million for the primary. This makes it difficult for candidates with low or only regional name recognition to break through. Add in production costs, staff salaries, and other expenses and very little is left for media buys.