Lantos' seat will likely be filled April 8
By David F. Smydra-[ david@hmbreview.com ]
February 21, 2008
Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger recently announced that a special election will be held June 3 to decide a successor to U.S. Rep. Tom Lantos, the San Mateo congressman who died Feb. 11, during his 14th term in the House of Representatives.But a winner could be decided well before June.
According to David Tom, San Mateo County elections manager, the April 8 "open primary" for the 12th Congressional District could decide a winner if any single candidate - Republican or Democrat - earns a majority of the vote.
"If somebody wins the April election outright - that's 50 percent plus one vote - then the June election goes away," Tom said. "If no one gets 50 plus one, then the party winners will go to the general election."
Unlike the recent Super Tuesday presidential primary, in which California voters had to vote within their parties, both Democrats and Republicans are free to vote for any candidate in April's open primary.
Many political observers say former state legislator Jackie Speier is a shoo-in to take over for Lantos.
Speier served for 10 years in the California Assembly and another eight in the state Senate. The former legal counsel for slain U.S. Rep. Leo J. Ryan, Speier has the endorsement of dozens of Peninsula politicos, including both U.S. senators from California and all five members of the San Mateo County Board of Supervisors. Lantos himself, then struggling with esophageal cancer, endorsed Speier in January.
Speier is so far the only declared candidate for the office. She may not be the only choice, however. Silicon Valley legend Lawrence Lessig, a Stanford law professor and founder of the Center for Internet and Society, has been mentioned across the Worldwide Web as a potential candidate. A "Draft Lessig for Congress" Facebook account had 2,000 members as of Monday and he has registered the domain name, change-congress.com.