Not exactly unexpected, but it looks like Hollings is set to announce his retirement:
thestate.com
Posted on Mon, Aug. 04, 2003
Hollings expected to announce retirement
DAVID ESPO
Associated Press
WASHINGTON - Veteran Democratic Sen. Ernest Hollings of South Carolina scheduled a news conference Monday to disclose his political plans and party sources said the 81-year-old lawmaker intended to announce he would not seek re-election next year.
The sources, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said they did not expect the six-term senator to throw his support behind any potential Democratic replacement. His office could not be reached for comment.
A retirement would give Republicans a second strong opportunity to pick up a southern seat - alongside Georgia_ in their bid to maintain control of the Senate in 2004.
Hollings was first elected to the Senate in 1966, a tenure distinguished by his Lowcountry drawl, his persistent efforts to attack federal deficits and his care in tending to issues of interest in his home state. He also has a sharp tongue, which he has occasionally wielded against Republicans and Democrats alike.
Several Republicans have already begun campaigning for the seat, including Rep. Jim DeMint, a third-term lawmaker, former state attorney general Charlie Condon and Thomas Ravenel.
Inez Tenenbaum, the Democratic state superintendent of public instruction, has signaled an interest in running for the seat if Hollings retires. She has twice been elected statewide and had scheduled a 4 p.m. news conference Monday.
Hollings would be the third senator to retire in 2004. Sen. Peter Fitzgerald, R-Ill., and Sen. Zell Miller, D-Ga., have announced plans not to run for new terms.
Decisions by Hollings and Miller not to run would confront Democrats with the need to hold two Southern seats as part of their drive to regain control. Republicans control the Senate, 51-48, with one independent.
Sens. John Edwards, D-N.C., and Bob Graham, D-Fla., are seeking the Democratic presidential nomination and have yet to say whether they will run for new Senate terms. |
