Rackauckas Says ’06 Bid for a Third Term Will Be His Last Political Race

Orange County District Atty. Tony Rackauckas said Friday that he would, as expected, seek reelection next year to a third term.

Rackauckas, a Republican, was elected in 1998 and resoundingly re-elected in 2002 despite a stinging grand jury report accusing him of mismanagement and cronyism.

One opponent to Rackauckas has emerged -- Assemblyman Todd Spitzer (R-Orange), a former Orange County supervisor.

Rackauckas said the 2006 campaign would be his final run for office, partly because he would be 68 at term’s end in 2010. He believes he can accomplish his outstanding goals in a third term, campaign spokesman Michael Schroeder said.

Rackauckas was elected and re-elected by margins of about 22% over Wally Wade, a former deputy district attorney in his office.

Rackauckas maintains strong backing from the county GOP establishment, along with a few Democrats.

Spitzer said Friday that it was significant that Rackauckas indicated that this would be his final run for office. He said he would be talking with his advisors over the weekend to discuss how his campaign bid might be affected.

“My intent has never been to split the Republican Party, the law enforcement community or the general public over a race for district attorney,” Spitzer said.

“I’m still very motivated to run. But what I’m saying is, you can’t ignore the fact that he’s saying he’s running for just one term.... Given the fact that he’s made this announcement, it has to be analyzed,” he said.