You can forget the John Garamendi to CA-03 boomlet, because he is officially announcing his intention to run for the vacancy in CA-10 caused by the departure of Ellen Tauscher, and he’ll even do a little campaigning today in Fairfield and Concord, at two one-stop employment centers.

Obviously, Garamendi felt outgunned monetarily in the Governor’s race, and thought that the CA-10 special election offered him the best shot at higher office.  It’s hard to fault him – this is a strategic play that makes a fair bit of sense.  While Sen. Mark DeSaulnier has nabbed the early endorsements, the polls show both him and Joan Buchanan with fairly low name ID in the district, so Garamendi’s long time in the public spotlight should serve him well.  And without question he would improve upon Tauscher in that district, and could emerge as a real leader.

However, I don’t see this as a slam-dunk yet.  Those DeSaulnier endorsements, including the major local politicians and labor, are all pretty crucial, although I suppose they could be adjusted.  Plus, there may be additional new candidates entering the race, which I’ll have more about tomorrow.

For today, John Garamendi has the stage.