DeVore announces re-election bid

Assemblyman Chuck DeVore has put rumors of a possible run for the state senate to rest with an announcement he would instead seek re-election for his Assembly seat in the 70th district.

Some political observers speculated that DeVore was considering an attempt to challenge incumbent State Sen. Tom Harman, who is also running for re-election.

DeVore made the announcement Monday during an Orange County GOP monthly meeting, where he received the group’s “2007 Legislator of the Year” award.

“I couldn’t think of a better night to announce my plans to run for re-election,” he said at the event. “The recognition for doing a job well done only makes me want to work harder for the people of the 70th District.”

DeVore said he was flattered by the suggestions of others that he run for Senate, but ultimately decided it was not in his best interest — or the interests of his constituents — to do so in the 2008 contest.

“I thought, at this juncture, we have a very large and difficult budget deficit that will be even more difficult to solve than the one that confronted former Gov. Gray Davis, and a lot of that work is going to be taking place in the middle of this year,” he said. “I need to focus on my job right now and do what I can to help solve this problem.”

DeVore will ultimately have to leave his seat in 2010 due to term limits, but after that, he said, he wouldn’t rule out a possible state Senate run in 2012.

“We’ll let the chips fall where they may — the voters will have their say this year, and if I have done something to earn their trust, I might be able to return to the legislature in some capacity in the future,” he said.