For much of the past two years, Brian J. Moran has seen a blur of rubber chicken political dinners, from Arlington to Appotomax. The 48-year-old delegate, usually accompanied by trusted aide Jesse Ferguson, has traversed over 200,000 miles, boosting his name recognition in every corner of the commonwealth.
Last week, Moran, a senior House Democrat representing Alexandrias 46th District, let the cat out of the bag on one of the state political establishments most openly-shared secrets: Hes seriously exploring a bid to succeed Gov. Tim Kaine (D).
Kaine, a political ally, is prohibited by Virginias Constitution for serving a consecutive term.
In Richmond on Friday, Moran established a committee from which he could launch his 2009 bid, filing papers with the State Board of Elections to create a political action committee, called Virginians for Brian Moran.
Moran told The Times Sunday at a legislative forum in Old Town that the PAC will be directed by veteran Virginia political strategist and fundraiser Mame Reiley. Veteran politico Steve Jarding, formerly campaign manager of Tim Kaine and Mark Warners successful bids for governor, will serve as general consultant.
Moran lives on Alexandrias West End and is married with two children in city schools. He becomes the second Democrat to publicly state his intent to run for governor. State Senator Creigh Deeds of Bath County announced his campaign last month. No Republican has publicly announced plans yet.
Moran said he did nothing more than file the paperwork that allows him to begin raising money and supporting other Democratic candidates for state and local offices, and that is seriously considering a bid. However, he said hes focused on the General Assembly session that begins this week. This sets up the legal framework to raise the money needed to run for Governor, Moran said. I plan to make my final decision by April when the Assembly ends the session.
Moran is the younger brother of Rep. Jim Moran (D-8), and chairman of the minority Democratic Party caucus in the House of Delegates. In the November elections, Democrats picked up four seats in the General Assembly and now control 44 of the 100 seats in the House.