State Sen. Christine Kehoe (D) announced today that she does not intend to throw her hat into the ring of official contenders for the mayoral race in San Diego.
Kehoe explained her decision came in part through “lots of thought” and conversations with friends and supporters, ultimately guiding Kehoe into the direction of not running in 2012. Up until her recent decision to bow out of the mayoral race, Kehoe had organized an exploratory committee around the possibility of running in 2012.
Kehoe would have been the third LGBT contender, joining City Councilman Carl DeMaio (R) and District Attorney Bonnie Dumanis (R) in the San Diego mayoral race. The San Diego Union-Tribune reported that Kehoe would not be endorsing any potential mayoral candidate “in the near term.”
Kehoe’s decision will likely serve as good news for Bob Filner, now the only Democrat on the ballot. The only other official candidate is State Assemblyman Nathan Fletcher (R). Filner and Fletcher are straight allies of the LGBT community.
Kehoe stated she will be focusing on her duties at the Senate until she will termed out in 2012 after serving eight years. Kehoe will have two years of eligibility thereafter to serve in the Assembly under term limits.
The San Diego mayoral primary is in June.
