Ones to watch outside the Beltway
By: Politico Staff
July 9, 2009 11:58 PM EDT
Rafael Anchia
Texas Democratic state Rep. Rafael Anchia doesn’t like talking about his future. But he may not be able to avoid it.
Like all the Outside-the-Beltway Politicos to Watch, Anchia is widely viewed as someone destined for bigger things, with political skills that would seem to put him on a different trajectory than his colleagues – perhaps even in statewide office or Washington one day.
First elected to the state House in 2004 at the age of 36, after serving on the board of the Dallas Independent School District, Anchia already has been referred to as “El Gobernador” by Texas Monthly. Dallas’s D Magazine went further, asking: “Is Rafael Anchia the Hispanic Obama?”
Like any disciplined rising star, he reacts with scrupulous humility.
“I always think of myself as just, you know, the simple son of immigrants who was lucky enough to go to good public schools and, ultimately, get a law degree,” Anchia told POLITICO.
But Anchia is more than just a simple kid who got lucky. A successful corporate attorney, he’s distinguished himself in the Legislature as a capable negotiator and debater, taking a leading role in efforts to fight a voter identification bill and throwing himself headfirst into the details of urban policy.
Reeling off a list of local challenges that include everything from stray dogs to the illicit sex trade, Anchia says his goal is to promote a “new urbanism” for his district.
“There are opportunities to build communities that are walkable, bikeable, that also include commuter rail,” Anchia said. “I love being in the Legislature.”
Texas politicos, however, seem convinced that’s not where Anchia’s career is likely to end. As his home state’s Latino population grows by the day, Democrats say Anchia could be a new kind of leader for a swiftly changing state.
“Anchia is one of those people that have a personal, human gift of being able to communicate with almost anyone,” said Lyndon Olson Jr., a Texas Democratic fundraiser and former ambassador to Sweden. “He has the innate gifts and is aware that in Texas, politically, we are an emerging Hispanic state.”
Anchia passed up a bid for mayor of Dallas in 2007. Some say that’s just as well, given how high they think he could climb.
“He considered running for mayor of Dallas, and I discouraged him from doing that. …Mayor of Dallas has been a dead-end job for many politicians,” said former Rep. Martin Frost (D-Texas), who described the legislator as a person of “virtually unlimited potential.”
“He could be governor of the state of Texas someday. He could be a member of Congress,” said Frost. “Certainly, he could be a United States senator.”
Anchia intends to run for reelection to his current job in 2010 and says his commitments to his wife, Marissa – whose father was an elected official – and their two young daughters might keep him off the statewide ballot for at least a little while.
But Anchia’s already making moves that could introduce him on the national stage sooner rather than later. He intends to take point on energy issues in the Legislature – a salient issue both nationally and in oil-rich Texas – and he already sounds like a man with an eye on his legacy.
“I’m focused on making sure that Texas continues to be an energy leader as we move from a fossil-fuel-dependent economy to a more balanced, fossil-plus-renewable economy,” Anchia said. “I think that’s where I want to leave a mark.”
He’s also gotten involved in groups, most notably the National Association of Latino Elected and Appointed Officials, with networks reaching far beyond the state of Texas.
“He’s got the full package. He’s not just articulate, smart, a good legislator; he’s attractive, he’s young, he’s got an attractive wife, he’s got two children,” said NALEO Executive Director Arturo Vargas. “A dream profile.”
– Alexander Burns
Bob McDonnell
Virginia’s governorship has proved to be a springboard to the national political scene: Four of the past five governors have pursued the presidency, and two have become national party chairmen. And if former state Attorney General Bob McDonnell wins the governorship in November, he’s likely to be the next Virginia pol who attracts notice beyond Richmond.
That’s because the state’s 2009 gubernatorial race is viewed as a harbinger of the 2010 election landscape, and Republicans will immediately embrace him as a leading indicator of a GOP comeback.
If McDonnell defeats Democratic nominee Creigh Deeds, it most likely will be a result of his ability to win over moderates and independents in Northern Virginia and conservatives elsewhere in the state. That is a rare and much-sought-after combination in the GOP these days.
“The reason everyone is talking about Bob McDonnell is that he can win,” said Nick Ayers, executive director of the Republican Governors Association. “That’s really been a challenge for our party in the state.”
McDonnell failed to grab many headlines this spring because he was unchallenged for the GOP nomination, and Democrats had a compelling three-way primary battle. But now McDonnell, who has already raised more than $5 million, is beginning to draw attention.
“Our folks are extremely motivated to win,” he told POLITICO. “There is as much energy in the party now as I’ve seen in our state.”
Minutes after winning the Democratic primary, Deeds revealed one of the Democratic lines of attack against McDonnell – he sought to link the Republican with the “disastrous economic and social agenda” of former President George W. Bush.
McDonnell, however, aims to distance himself from that legacy, saying he hopes his campaign can signal that the GOP is a “happy, enthusiastic, can-do party.”
– Andy Barr
Marco Rubio
At the age of 38, Marco Rubio already has a silver-plated political résumé. A former speaker of the Florida House, he has close ties to popular former GOP Gov. Jeb Bush and has authored a book detailing a reform-minded policy agenda for his home state.
As an outspoken Cuban-American conservative, he has shown the ability to connect the two disparate elements of the party: those who want a more diverse face for the GOP and those who want the party to focus on and preserve its conservative principles.
While he would appear to be a Republican dream candidate, there’s just one problem: To take the next step in his political career, he has to defeat popular GOP Gov. Charlie Crist. Both are running in the Republican primary to succeed GOP Sen. Mel Martinez, who is not seeking reelection in 2010.
If elected, Rubio would almost immediately win national notice as the only Hispanic Republican in the Senate – and one of only four in all of Congress.
Rubio, however, is a distinct underdog, since the party establishment has rallied behind Crist.
“I’m running on the idea that the things that made America the greatest nation in the world are being lost,” Rubio said in an interview. “It’s not just about winning for me. It’s about advocating for the principles you believe in.”
– Josh Kraushaar
Kamala Harris
Even in California, a state with a deep and diverse bench of Democratic talent, San Francisco District Attorney Kamala Harris stands out.
A two-term prosecutor whose innovative approach to law enforcement has made her a rising star in progressive politics, she is both the state’s first female African-American district attorney and the nation’s first Indian-American district attorney.
On Harris’s watch, felony conviction rates hit a 14-year high and elementary school truancy fell 23 percent after she began prosecuting the parents of chronically truant children.
“I call it the ‘smart on crime’ approach,” Harris told POLITICO. “We’ve got to be efficient, swift and certain after it occurs, but we also have to do what we can to prevent crime before it occurs.”
Harris has drawn fire from San Francisco police, who accuse her office of inflating conviction rates and bringing too few cases to
trial. And in 2004, Harris, who opposes the death penalty, angered many by refusing to seek execution for the killer of a city police officer.
But that hasn’t stopped Harris from establishing herself as the front-runner in California’s 2010 race for attorney general.
– Zachary Abrahamson
Jennifer McClellan
She’s just 36 years old, but Del. Jennifer McClellan has already established herself as key player in the Virginia Democratic Party, where she has served as a superdelegate and as vice chairwoman since December 2006.
McClellan got plugged into the state’s Democratic network early, leading the University of Richmond Young Democrats in college. After graduation, she led the statewide Young Democrats group for three years while in law school at the University of Virginia.
Elected to the House of Delegates in 2005, McClellan has emerged as a close ally of Gov. Tim Kaine while focusing on public education and reducing predatory lending.
“I see myself as somebody who tries to, whatever the issue, define the common ground and work to find common-sense solutions,” McClellan told POLITICO. “Part of what’s wrong with politics today is too many people view it as a battle.”
– Zachary Abrahamson
