Elton Gallegly (R-CA-24) , in his 11th term, has announced his retirement for health reasons.
Elton Gallegly has retired. The filing deadline has already closed for Republicans, which means that any Republican who is trying to hold this seat will have to run as an Indy- at least that is what it appears. Feel free to correct me in the comments. This seems to be a major pickup opportunity.
Gallegly won reelection in 2004 with 63% of the vote, with the Democrat, Brett Wagner, receiving 34% of the vote and a Green getting 3%. However, it went 56% for Bush and 43% for Kerry, which makes the race seem much more winnable.
The three democratic candidates for the seat are:
Jill Martinez (D) - Minister & Community Activist
Mary Pallant (D) - Insurance Agent, Psychologist & Democratic Activist
Brett Wagner (D) - Educator, National Security Policy Think Tank Founder & '04 Nominee
www.jillmartinez2006.com
www.maryforcongress.com
www.brettwagner2006.com
This seems like a definite pick-up opportunity.