December 15, 2007

The Past or the Future

The Associated Press reports that state Sen. John Wilder, D-Somerville, plans to run again for the state Senate in 2008. Wilder, who will be 87 on election day, served as Senate Speaker and Lt. Governor for 36 years until the Democrats lost the majority in the 2006 election. Republican state Rep. Dolores Gresham and Selmer physician Tim Linder are both considering running for the Republican nomination to challenge Wilder.

With Wilder's party sliding into minority status in the state Senate, Wilder's power - already diminished by losing the Lt. Gov. post - will decline further after the '08 election as Democrats are unlikely to recapture the state Senate in 2008. Thus, the election will be a give voters a chance to chose between the past and the future.