Virg Bernero

South Lansing Ingham County Commissioner '91-'99
68th District Representative '00-'02
23rd District Senator '03-'04
Lansing Mayor '05-'09

Although he has not yet announced his bid for Governor some have mentioned the mayor of Lansing as a potential candidate and there are some grassroots efforts to 'draft' Bernero into running in 2010 (the site has not posted since February)

Having conducted his political career in moderate obscurity, Virg Bernero suddenly jumped in the spotlight when he ran against Tony Benavides in the 2003 mayoral election. If my memory serves me right Benavides painted Bernero as a carpetbagger (“the leader you know...the leader you trust”). In the end Bernero, who had more money, lost by a mere 258 votes. Then in 2005 rallied and won 68% of the vote over Benavides who's new image was, ineffective mayor, rather than the hometown boy.

Early Political Image:

Virg Bernero is, to my knowledge, either going to stay mayor or be elected out before the 2010 election. When I called his office this morning to find which districts he represented, when I asked if there was anything else she wanted to say about the mayor staffer directed me to the city website, which focuses on his acomplishments as mayor. It looks like he will be running for Mayor in 2009 and not for for Governor in 2010.

Yesterday's cable news rounds ought to make the point clear enough. Virg Bernero is not using the kind of conciliatory or party platform rhetoric of a person who is about to enter a gubernatorial primary campaign. If He is planing on running Virg is going to have to change his campaign style quickly. Right now, the language that Bernero is using invokes small town protectionism with community salesmanship, what a mayor should sound like if s/he is about to enter a reelection campaign.