Some Democrats are giving State Sen. Daniel Mongiardo some heat for saying that Chandler should make up his mind on running for governor now, rather than waiting until after this year's general election. Like most other potential candidates for Governor, Mongiardo says he'll support Chandler if Chandler decides to run. But Mongiardo says Chandler is hurting Democrats' chances to hit the campaign trail and start collecting cash by putting off a decision until after November.
Others say a Chandler candidacy would detract from this year's crop of Democrats who are scrambling to raise money and beat some Republicans. See the Yarmuth, Weaver and Lucas congressional campaigns for details.
But I think Mongiardo may have a point. Chandler can afford to make a decision at the end of this year. He'll be the favorite to win, no matter who he faces, and raising money from engineers, road contractors and others who want to suck up to him won't be a problem. That's not true for Crit Luallen, Steve Henry, Mongiardo or any of the other Governor wannabes.
I suspect Henry and maybe Mongiardo will declare their candidacies this summer so they can speak at the Fancy Farm Picnic. They could declare, get lots of exposure at Fancy Farm, not raise a penny, then bow out gracefully if Chandler decides to run. Otherwise, Mongiardo is right, Chandler may be hurting his party's chances of winning in 2007.