Connecticut Gov. M. Jodi Rell will not run in 2010 11.09.09
Connecticut Gov. M. Jodi Rell announced late Monday that she will not seek reelection in 2010. "After much soul-searching and discussion with my family," she said at a 5 p.m. press conference at the State Capitol, "I have decided not to seek re-election next year." Rell has held record high approval ratings in the state, reaching a peak of 83 percent in January 2005. A September Quinnipiac University poll showed that 59 percent of state residents approved of her job performance. Lt. Gov. Michael Fedele has already stated he would run if Rell did not, and a number of other state Republicans are expected to join the race in the coming weeks and months. Senate President Donald Williams, a Democrat, thanked Rell for her years of service on behalf of Connecticut residents. "I wish her and her family well as they begin the next chapter of their lives. In the meantime, the best thing we can do for the next governor – whoever it is – is to work together to grow jobs and help stabilize our economy," he said in a statement. Rell first took office in 2004, after then-Gov. John Rowland resigned as a result of a corruption scandal.
