State Sen. Jon Erpenbach, D-Middleton, said Friday he will likely run for a national congressional seat if U.S. Rep. Tammy Baldwin, D-Wis., decides to run for Senate in 2011.
Erpenbach revealed plans to pursue Baldwin's seat in Wisconsin's 2nd Congressional District Friday in an interview with Wisconsin political news show ""Here and Now.""
In the ""Here and Now"" interview, Erpenbach told anchor Frederica Freyberg he's ""taking a really close look and, in all likelihood, would run for congress"" pending a Baldwin Senate campaign.
On the same program, Erpenbach also emphatically quashed rumors of a potential gubernatorial bid, should Gov. Scott Walker face recall next year, saying bluntly, ""No, I won't run for governor.""
Having served as state senator since 1998, Erpenbach would step into the race in the heavily Democratic 2nd District Baldwin has represented since 1999.
Erpenbach became a prominent voice in the media when he and 13 fellow senate democrats fled the state in February to protest Gov. Scott Walker's Budget Repair Bill. The senator boasts spots on CNN, MSNBC and Chicago FOX News, as well as Comedy Central's ""Daily Show"" and ""Colbert Report.""
Baldwin's name has been floated as a possible replacement for U.S. Sen. Herb Kohl, D-Wis., after the veteran senator announced his retirement in May following four terms in the U.S. Senate.
While Baldwin has yet to officially announce her candidacy, she told the Capital Times in July she is ""likely to run,"" and has raised over $1.1 million in cash on hand, according to reports filed with the Federal Election Commission.
