Kanavas Won't Run for Senate in Wisconsin

By Sean Sullivan  //  September 29, 2011 | 12:08 p.m.
Updated: October 2, 2011 | 3:10 p.m.

Updated at 1:41 p.m.

Former Wisconsin state Sen. Ted Kanavas won't be running for the Senate in 2012, he announced Thursday.

"The decision was really made largely based on the practical inability to get to about six million dollars for fundraising," Kanavas, who had spent the summer considering a run, told Hotline On Call in a brief phone interview.

One major factor in Kanavas's decision-making process? Former Gov. Tommy Thompson.

"Tommy, by virtue of his name ID and fundraising base, would make it difficult for me because we have similar backgrounds," said Kanavas, who served as Thompson's Waukesha County coordinator during his first gubernatorial bid in 1986.

Despite the fact that Kanavas has known Thompson for decades and says they "have a lot of the same friends," he isn't endorsing him or anyone else in the race right now.

"I'm probably not going to endorse in the race," Kanavas said, adding, "I may change my mind on that based on what happens."

Thompson was quick to praise Kanavas.

"As a longtime friend, I respect Ted's decision regarding the race for US Senate and I know he remains committed to electing a Republican Senator next year that will bring the fight to Washington to restore fiscal sanity and create jobs," Thompson said in a statement. Along with Thompson, who has said he is preparing a run, former Rep. Mark Neumann is also running. Assembly Speaker Jeff Fitzgerald reportedly plans to launch next month. "Ted demonstrated that many members of the Republican grassroots would have supported him. While Ted is not running for United States Senate this time, I'm confident he will continue to be a voice for Republican principles in the years ahead," Neumann said of Kanavas.

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