Bysiewicz, The Day After

The Connecticut Supreme Court knocked Bysiewicz out of the attorney general's race by saying she wasn't qualified to hold the seat.  Now, there are least two questions that remain.  One is, what’s next for Bysiewicz?

 

“I haven’t made any immediate plans, I haven’t made any decisions.  I’m still taking it all in and listening to my supporters.”

 

George Jepsen is the last remaining Democrat running for the attorney general’s seat.  He’s also a former state party chairman, and he told WNPR’s Where We Live that Bysiewicz – who ran for governor before she ran for attorney general – still has options.

 

“She could seek her current position as secretary of the state, she could run for comptroller…She could just say, ‘I’m going to take a break here.’  She’s always  had an interest in running for the U.S. senate in 2012.”

 

But Jepsen says that if she wants to run this year, she’ll have to balance her own base of support with those of the campaigns already underway. 

 

“I wouldn’t say that she’s weakened.  Her problem is that there are other strong candidates in the race who’ve built up support as well.”

 

Another question is this: what’s next for the attorney general’s race?

 

Jepsen says he was as shocked as anyone by Tuesday’s decision of the Connecticut Supreme Court that knocked Bysiewicz out of contention.  

 

But, if there are lessons to be taken from this year’s Democratic political maneuvering, they include these: any candidacy is possible and no candidacy is certain.  

 

So while Jepsen was the party’s only candidate for attorney general Wednesday morning, he wouldn’t rule out the possibility that someone else could still join in. 

 

“I’ve been doing this a long time and I’ve never seen a year quite like this one.”

 

And then there's this.  Ross Garber, Bysiewicz's brother-in-law, is going to run for attorney general as a Republican.

 

The Democrats and Republicans hold their conventions this weekend.

 

For WNPR, I’m Jeff Cohen.