It has long been suspected that Gov. Christine Gregoire would decline running for third term in 2012. Several media sources are now reporting that Gregoire will make her retirement “official” at a 10:00 AM press conference today.
Gregoire’s statement clears the way for an announcement from Rep. Jay Inslee (D-WA-01) that he will be running for the office. Expect an announcement soon.
Unless something really odd happens because of the top-two primary system, Fall of 2012 should bring us a choice between Inslee and State Attorney General, Rob McKenna (R).