January 12, 2010 09:19 PM UTC

Hickenlooper Announces Run for Governor

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• by: Colorado Pols

UPDATE #3: From 9NEWS:

During an afternoon news conference on the steps of the State Capitol he said, “Some people out there still don’t know who I am. My name is John Hickenlooper and I want to be the next governor of Colorado.”

“Sometimes fate has a way of delivering an opportunity right when the hill is at its steepest. It seems often the way, some might argue this is the worst time to run for governor, given the challenges that are facing our state. We are, after all, in the middle of the worst economic downturn since the Great Depression. But I love Colorado every bit as much as I love Denver,” Hickenlooper said. “We’re getting into this race because it is a privilege to live in Colorado.”

UPDATE #2: 9NEWS’s Adam Schrager Tweets that GOP opponent Scott McInnis will appear live in the studio immediately following Hickenlooper’s announcement. No word on what color McInnis’ hair will be.

UPDATE: Announcement reportedly set for 4:15PM at the state capitol–not the City and County building across the way, mind you.

Breaking Denver Post:

Denver Mayor John Hickenlooper has told top Democrats he intends to run for governor, sources tell The Denver Post.

Hickenlooper has been meeting with key advisers since Democratic Gov. Bill Ritter last week unexpectedly announced he was dropping his re-election bid…

In addition, Hickenlooper wants to “get out front” of any announcement from former House Speaker Andrew Romanoff that he will enter the race for governor, a source said.

Also of interest in the Post story is the note that Hickenlooper knows who he won’t have running his campaign–no more Sean Duffy issues.

Meanwhile, Hickenlooper on Monday informed political consultant David Kenney, who had been running Ritter’s re-election effort, that he’d wouldn’t be working on his campaign.

“He said he did not want me to have a formal role in his campaign,” Kenney said. “He said he was concerned that I’m a lobbyist, but I’m not a registered lobbyist.”

Kenney said he was stunned at the news, particularly because was part of the inner circle that swept Hickenlooper to victory in the 2003 Denver mayor’s race and he has already spent two years working on Ritter’s campaign.

Ditching Kenney isn’t a total surprise, since his win-loss record isn’t really reflective of someone who should be handed the keys from one statewide race to the next.