Politics & Government

UPDATE: State Attorney General McKenna Announces 2012 Bid for Governor

Around Bonney Lake and Sumner, local leaders are hesitant to say if they'll support his bid or not.

State Attorney General Rob McKenna officially announced a bid for governor in 2012.

McKenna made his announcement before a crowd of Republican Party supporters in the theater of Sammamish High School, his alma mater.

McKenna, a Bellevue resident, has been in public office since he was first elected in 1995 to Metropolitan King County Council. He was elected to be state Attorney General in 2004.

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State Republican Party chairman Kirby Wilbur said that many feel that McKenna is the Republican Party's best chance at the governor's office in decades. The last Republican governor of Washington was John Spellman, who left office in 1985.

"I have always felt the more people that run for a position the better for our democracy. I think Rob McKenna is a strong candidate and he believes in open government, which is great," said Bonney Lake mayor Neil Johnson in an email to Patch.

Find out what's happening in Bonney Lake-Sumnerwith free, real-time updates from Patch.

When asked if he would vote for McKenna, Johnson continued: "From a party perspective, I have always been an independent and vote for candidates / legislation based on the criteria. I will need to wait and see who all get’s in the race before I decide to support or declare any support for a candidate."

Sumner mayor Dave Enslow echoed Johnson's remarks.

"I know Rob and like him. I have a great deal of respect for him and think he would do a great job," said Enslow. "However, it would be premature to endorse him before seeing what other candidates there are. The choice of our Governor is an important one and needs to be made not about friendship but about competency, vision and goals for leading our state. Stay tuned until other candidates are declared."

McKenna, who lives in Bellevue, has been in elected office since 1995, starting with the Metropolitan King County Council, and was elected to the Attorney General's office in 2004. Before becoming an elected official, he was an attorney at Perkins Coie, specializing in business and regulatory law.

In April, McKenna was the


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