Damn. Sam beat me to the 2010 Senate race post. Oh well. Here’s a quick look at 2010 Governor Races:

Democrat Held Seats-

Arkansas: Mike Beebe beat Asa Hutchinson in 2006, and he was probably our best candidate. Arkansas may vote for Republican presidents, but it loves Democrats for state offices.

Arizona: Janet Napolitano is term-limited and will probably run for senate. This state is trending blue, and retaking the state house will be difficult, especially with few strong candidate.

Colorado: Bill Ritter wasn’t even the Dems’ first choice back in 2006, but now he’s their conquering hero. I don’t think Colorado is too far gone, but Ritter is popular and we’d need a good candidate to take him out. Tom Tancrado is running, and he’s not exactly what I’d consider a “good candidate”. Not statewide, anyways.

Illinois: Rod Blagojevich might be in prison by the time 2010 rolls around. Ah, Chicago politics. Gotta love it. If he’s not enjoying the hospitality of a gray bar hotel, Democrat AG Lisa Madigan might primary him. Madigan’s father is the Speaker of the House, so she’d have a lot of behind-the-scenes support. Bill Daley may also run. As for Republicans… does it matter anymore?

Iowa: Chet Culver narrowly won election in 2006 and looks good for 2010. Former Congressman Jim Nussle may seek a rematch of the 2006 race. If Grassley retires, most top tier Republicans will probably jump into the Senate race and leave Culver alone.

Kansas: Kathleen Sebelius is term-limited, and may even be appointed to a Cabinet position before her term ends. Assuming this is an open seat, the most likely Republican candidate is Sen. Sam Brownback, who’s already pretty much announced his candidacy. Possible Dem candidates are Lieutenant Governor Mark Parkinson and former Lieutenant Governor John E. Moore.

Maine: John Baldacci is term limited. It’s unlikely that any Republican not named Olympia Snowe or Susan Collins could win this seat. Possible Dem candidates are state Senate President Beth Edmonds and Congressman Mike Michaud.

Maryland: Martin O’Malley, who is a slimeball, narrowly beat Gov. Bob Erlich in a Democrat state in a Democrat year in 2006. Now he suffers from lousy approval ratings and a few months ago wasn’t even sure if he’d run again. Erlich would be the best candidate to challenge him, followed of course by Michael Steele. Steele however, may opt to run for the U.S. Senate is Mikulski retires. E.J. Pipkin is also thinking of running (oh please no).

Massachusetts: Deval Patrick is actually quite unpopular among Bay Staters and even fellow Democrats. He may head for safer harbors with a nice cushy cabinet position. If he does decide to run again, however, it’s unlikely he’d lose to anyone other than Mitt Romney. Romney, of course, will have other things on his mind.

Michigan: Jennifer Granholm, also known as “The Worst Governor in the Country”, is term limited. If the people of Michigan are stupid enough to continue the ruinous policies of liberal governance, they can pick between Flint Mayor Don Williamson (who has officially announced) and probably Lt. Gov. Don Cherry. Republican Rep. Pete Hoekstra wants to run, but he’d have to give up a safe house seat. AG Mike Cox is probably the strongest GOP candidate.

New Hampshire: One of only two states to have two-year gubernatorial terms, Gov. John Lynch was just re-elected with 70% of the vote in a state that’s getting bluer by the day.

New Mexico: Bill Richardson is term limited. Lt. Governor Dinane Denish (D) has already announced that she’s running. Other possible Dem candidates are Albuquerque Mayor Martin Chavez and former AG Patricia Madrid. On the Republican side, looks like Steve Pearce and Heather Wilson have some free time.

New York: David Patterson took over when Eliot “The Lady’s Man” Spitzer resigned over a prostitution scandal. Patterson’s got his own problems, but the people of N.Y. have become so damn-awful stupid that they’d elect polluted spittle from the East River if it had a (D) next to it. Rudy Giuliani is looking at this race and he’s the only one who could even make it close.

Ohio: Ted Strickland is running again, and despite making hay out of obviously and inexcusably corrupt Republican politicians, his administration hasn’t exactly been squeaky clean either. The top GOP challenger would be John Kasich… if he runs. If he takes a pass, Ken Blackwell could seek a rematch of their 2006 race.

Oklahoma: The only reason Brad Henry is the liberal governor of this conservative state is because some multi-millionaire with nothing better to do ran as a conservative 3rd party candidate in 2002, winning enough votes to prevent Steve Largent from winning. But Henry has proved himself popular and capable; he crushed Ernest Istook in 2006. Now he’s term limited, and the most likely Dem candidates are Tulsa Mayor Kathy Taylor and Lt. Governor Jari Askins. Congresswoman and former Lt. Gov. Mary Fallin is a likely GOP candidate, and Largent may also try again. Don’t forget J.C. Watts either.

Oregon: Ted Kulongoski will be term limited in 2010. Possible Democratic contenders include former Governor John Kitzhaber, State Treasurer Randall Edwards, and Congressman Earl Blumenauer. Does it really matter who the GOP candidate is? Probably not.

Pennsylvania: Ed Rendell is term limited. There is a huge line of people getting ready to run in both parties. I’ll let our PA residents sort this out for us.

Tennessee: Phil Bredesen is term limited. Dem candidates include Harold Ford and former Nashville Mayor Bill Purcell. Bredesen himself was the mayor of Nashville before becoming governor. Republicans really want this seat back, and top candidates include Bill Frist and Zach Wamp. It’s unlikely that Marsha Blackburn would make the run, as her power within the U.S. House GOP caucus is only going to grow now.

Wisconsin: Jim Doyle will probably seek a third term in 2010. Milwaukee County Executive Scott Walker is the strongest possible challenger. Hopefully Paul Ryan takes a pass on this and stays in the US House, where we need him.

Wyoming: Dave Freudenthal is a rarity- a Democrat in Wyoming. Even more rare- he’s successful at it. But he’s also term limited and Republicans want the office back. Top candidates are House Majority Leader Colin Simpson (Sen. Alan Simpson’s son) and Sect. of State Max Maxfield.

Republican Held Seats-

Alabama: Bob Riley is term limited.

Alaska: Sarah Palin may decide to run for Ted Stevens’ U.S. Senate seat if that senile old fart finally gets tossed out of office. Assuming she runs for re-election, Anchorage Mayor Mark Begich, who just lost to Stevens, might give her a challenge. She will be a top target for national Democrats looking to knock her off before she becomes a threat in 2012.

California: Ahnold ends a disappointing run in 2010. It seemed as if he would actually try to clean up that state, but he ended up leaving it pretty much the way he found it- highly taxed and in debt. Possible Republican successors include Tom Campbell, Darrell Issa, and Meg Whitman. State Insurance Commissioner Steve Poizner is also running. There’s a long list of possible Dem candidates, but the top ones are U.S Representative Loretta Sanchez, San Francisco Mayor Gavin Newsom (both of whom have exploratory committees). Lieutenant Governor John Garamendi has announced he will run, and Attorney General and former Governor Jerry Brown and Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa may also run.

Connecticutt: Jodi Rell can run again, but she may decide to seek Chris Dodd’s seat instead (hopefully by knocking that blithering oaf out on his fat corrupt ass). Dem AG Richard Blumenthal would be a very strong candidate for this seat. Former Congressman Rob Simmons (R) is moderate and popular enough to have a shot at this.

Florida: Charlie “The People’s Governor” Crist absolutely destroyed a popular Democrat in a Democrat year to win an open seat election in 2006. He remains popular, but Florida’s economic troubles might hurt him.  He’s also angered conservatives with his ultra-conciliatory and moderate stances. House Speaker Marco Rubio is so angry he’s rumored to be eying a primary against Crist. If Rubio’s going RINO-hunting, he’s better off targeting Mel Martinez instead. Possible Dem candidates include Chief Financial Officer Alex SInk, Tampa Mayor Pam Iorio, Orlando Mayor Buddy Dyer, and former St. Sen. Rod Smith.

Georgia: Sonny Perdue is term limited, meaning that we’ll have two Gov. Perdues for only two years (Bev Perdue was just elected in N.C. No relation… I think). I’ll let our Georgians handle this one.

Hawaii: Linda Lingle is term limited. Hawaii is very blue, and if Republicans are able to hold onto the governor’s mansion it will only be because of a carryover of Lingle’s high approval ratings. Lingle’s Lieutenant Governor James Aiona is the most likely GOP candidate. Dem candidates include former U.S. Representative Ed Case, U.S. Representative Neil Abercrombie, state Senate President Colleen Hanabusa, former State Senator Malama Soloman, and Mayor of Honolulu Mufi Hannemann.

Idaho: Butch Otter (God, I love his name), pending any scandal or illness, will destroy any Democrat who wants to be a sacrificial lamb.

Minnesota: Tim Pawlenty can seek a third term in 2010, but he may leave office to concentrate on a presidential campaign instead. If he does decide to seek re-election, he’ll be favored, but only slightly. Dem candidates include Minneapolis Mayor R.T. Rybak, St. Paul mayor Chris Coleman and former U.S. Senator / Target heir Mark Dayton. And who knows, maybe Al Franken will show up to lighten things up again!

Nebraska: Dave Heineman can run again and will be tough to beat. The only Democrats that could give him a challenge are Bob Kerry and Omaha Mayor Jeff Fahey, and neither are likely to run.

Nevada: Jim Gibbons has a >50% approval rating, and only barely slipped into office in 2006. He’s also going through a nasty divorce and the FBI is looking into personal accounting irregularities. AND Nevada has become a blue state again. He will not have an easy time in 2010. Potential opponents are Attorney General Catherine Masto, State Treasurer Kate Marshall, Assembly Speaker Barbara Buckley and Las Vegas Mayor Oscar Goodman.

Rhode Island: Yes, Rhode Island actually has a Republican governor. And yes, he is a flaming moderate. But not for too much longer, as Don Carcieri is term limited. Republicans have a short bench here, but one potential candidate is Cranston Mayor Steve Laffey, who primaried Lincoln Chaffee two years ago. Dem candidates include former Lieutenant Governor Charlie Fogarty, who lost narrowly in his 2006 challenge to Carcieri; state Attorney General Patrick C. Lynch; Providence Mayor David Cicilline; State Treasurer Frank Caprio; and Lieutenant Governor Elizabeth H. Roberts.

South Carolina: I don’t even live in S.C. and I’m gonna miss Mark Sanford. One of the best governors in the country is term limited, and the RINOs in Columbia are rejoicing as I type this. Potential GOP candidates are Lt. Gov. Andre Bauer, Speaker of the House Bobby Harrell, AG Henry McMaster, and Rep. Gresham Barrett. The top Dem candidate is probably Superintendent of Education Jim Rex. This a conservative state and the GOP nominee will be heavily favored.

South Dakota: Mike Rounds is term limited. In an ideal world, he and John Thune would switch places; Thune really wants to be governor, not senator, and the more fiscally conservative Rounds would be a welcome addition to D.C. In any event, it’s unlikely any Dem except Rep. Stephenie Herseth Sandlin can steal this seat away. Daschle could too, but he’s unlikely to run. Lieutenant Governor Dennis Daugaard and Sen. John Thune are the top GOP names.

Texas: Will Rick Perry please go away? Either he will on his own or Kay Bailey Hutchinson will make him. If Hutchinson and Perry both decline to run, Lt. Gov. David Dewhurst is next in line. Houston Mayor Bill White is the top Dem name being floated around.

Vermont: The ony thing stranger than a Democrat governor in Wyoming is a Republican governor in Vermont, and yet that’s what Jim Douglas is. Vermont governors serve two year terms, and Douglas was easily re-elected last week. He’ll probably be easily re-elected again in two years if he doesn’t run for Bernie Sanders’ U.S. Senate seat.