Castle Rock, Colorado — While the news media are in celebratory mode over New York’s Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton announcing her intention to seek the Democrat Party nomination for President of the United States in 2008, conservatives will perhaps also celebrate some good news in the coming days: Colorado’s own superstar, Rep. Tom Tancredo, seeking the GOP nomination for POTUS.
While Tancredo is expected to announce his plans — which includes retirement after five terms in Congress — to pursue what’s considered a quixotic presidential bid in the coming days, political observers are already speculating as to who will take Tancredo’s congressional seat.
Tancredo, highly regarded among conservatives for his uncompromising stances on immigration reform, will be tough to replace but some conservatives are already lining up to take a shot at the prize of representing this overwhelmingly Republican district. Much like the congressional district to the south (C0-5), the 6th District race will almost certainly be decided in the August primary election with only a slim chance of a Democrat ever representing this district.
Two Colorado state senators top the list of possible successors to Tancredo. State Senator Tom Wiens (S-4) (https://www.tomwiens.com) and newly elected State Senator Ted Harvey (S-30) (https://www.tedharvey.com) have both signaled to supporters that they are ready to run if and when Tancredo announces retirement.
Wiens has the political experience, connections and personal wealth to develop a formidable campaign. Additionally, Wiens has developed a Tancredo-like reputation in the state legislature as a conservative reformer on issues such as immigration and border security, tax policy, as well as on social issues such as protecting life and the 2nd Amendment. Recently, Wiens played a prominent role in passing Colorado