February 27, 2007 12:22 AM UTC

McInnis Makes it Official

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• by: Colorado Pols

From CQ Politics:

Retired House member Scott McInnis, a Republican who represented Colorado’s 3rd District from 1993 to 2005, has filed paperwork that formalizes his bid for the seat of Republican Sen. Wayne Allard, who is retiring after two terms.

McInnis, a lawyer and lobbyist, is widely viewed as the front-runner for the Republican nomination that would likely pit him against Democrat Mark Udall, the five-term representative of Colorado’s 2nd District. Although Udall has not yet made his Senate candidacy official, he signaled as early as two years ago that he intends to run in the 2008 race.

McInnis submitted a “statement of candidacy” and a “statement of organization” to the Senate Office of Public Records, which processed the documents Feb. 21. By filing the documents, McInnis can begin raising money for his incipient Senate campaign, which he has not yet formally announced.

He may also transfer the $943,000 that sits in the House campaign account he kept open, even though he declined to seek re-election in 2004. Campaign finance regulations allow a current or former House member to transfer unlimited funds from his or her House campaign committee to a Senate campaign committee.