Charlie Weaver

Gov. Tim Pawlenty’s announcement earlier this month that he will not seek a third term has unleashed a political gold rush among Republican politicians in the state. Minnesota’s current political landscape includes an eye-popping 18 declared and possible gubernatorial contenders.

Democrat Tom Bakk is running for governor. The state senator from Virginia made it official yesterday. Bakk originally set up an exploratory committee and began raising money roughly a year ago. The chair of the Senate’s Taxes Committee was a strong advocate during the recently completed legislative session for increasing taxes on the state’s wealthiest [...]

Gov. Tim Pawlenty’s decision not to seek a third term is widely viewed as an indication that he plans to seriously test the waters for a presidential bid in 2012. But at a press conference this afternoon he insisted that he has no future political plans.

Tim Pawlenty will announce whether he plans to seek a third term as governor this afternoon. The early word: he’s not running for re-election. Both WCCO (Channel 4)  political reporter Pat Kessler and Minnesota Public Radio’s Tom Scheck cite sources that indicate Pawlenty has decided against seeking a third term and is dialing up national [...]