Lt. Gov.
"It's always better to be candid than coy. While I am humbled by the widespread encouragement of so many and hold in the highest esteem those who serve us in federal office, I know that my head and my heart, my young family's future, and our unfinished work all remain firmly in the state of California --- not Washington, D.C. Therefore I will not seek election to the U.S. Senate in 2016," Newsom said.
The former mayor of San Francisco has long expressed a desire to run for governor. He briefly ran the state's top executive post in 2010 until it became clear that Jerry Brown would be the Democratic nominee, at which point Newsom successfully ran for lieutenant governor instead.
Newsom also has three young children, and he and his wife are said to be reluctant to move their family from Marin County to Washington, D.C.
But Newsom, like many prominent Democrats in California, had been urged to seriously consider a run for Boxer's seat after she announced last week that she would not seek another term. The state last had an open U.S. Senate seat in 1992, and given California's Democratic tilt, whichever candidate wins the post is nearly assured the job for as long as he or she wants it, barring scandal.
Newsom’s announcement intensifies the focus on Atty. Gen.
On Sunday, she demurred when asked by a reporter at an event in Los Angeles whether she would run for Boxer's seat.
"I am just enjoying this day, thank you," she told The Times after giving a short speech at the City Club about her goals in her second term as the state's top law-enforcement officer.
Newsom, 47, joins Los Angeles Mayor
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