Former Congressman Dan Maffei dipped his toe back into the political water today. Maffei tried to stake out ground for the democratic nomination through this early declaration. He also tried to frame himself in the mold of a moderate especially when compared to republican Ann Marie Buerkle who bumped him from the seat in November in a narrow election.
The Maffei email began by apologizing for not communicating with his supporters sooner as he recovered from the loss. He then wrote, "I want you to know that I am strongly considering running again for Congress in 2012. Whatever the future may hold, one thing is clear. We cannot give up on our region or in the idea of broad-based moderate representation that takes into account the many diverse groups in Upstate New York."
The former congressman will have to see how several variables play out before making a final decision on running. Redistricting tops the list. New York's legislature has to decide which two congressional seats will disappear before 2012. The upstate districts could see boundaries changed and widened in eliminating one of the seats.
Then Maffei will have to see who gets the support from the upper echelon of the party nationally, state wide and locally. He could have opposition within the party. After all he has lost twice and won once. Even though he blamed national politics for his defeat in his letter to supporters there could be another candidate in his own backyard that could have a better chance of winning.
Finally, he does not yet know who his opponent will be in November of 2012. His letter attacks Congresswoman Ann Marie Buerkle for being aligned only with the Tea Party conservatives. Maffei could run against her developing voting record and his views that oppose hers. But, the congresswoman has not declared or even hinted she plans to run again.
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