I thought this Ventura County Star article made an interesting point. If the Governor wins re-election this year, there are a slew of democratic contenders for 2010. Chief among them is Superintendent of Public Instruction Jack O'Connell.

If Schwarzenegger wins re-election this fall, he will be termed out in 2010, creating an open seat that will be a magnet for just about any Democratic officeholder you can name, starting with Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa, San Francisco Mayor Gavin Newsom and Controller Steve Westly, who could well make a second run at the nomination after having fallen just short this June.

Depending on the outcomes of the down-ticket elections in November, add John Garamendi, Bill Lockyer and former Gov. Jerry Brown to the list.

O'Connell, assured of holding office for the next four years and with no campaign standing between him and 2010, is taking advantage of that distinction by positioning himself high on the list that will quickly begin to form if Schwarzenegger wins.

In that event, said O'Connell's political strategist Gale Kaufman, "I would predict that Nov. 10 would not be too soon to begin the inevitable game of 'Who's running in 2010?' The fact that Jack is positioning himself now doesn't negate what he's doing to help Phil."

What makes it even more interesting is that some of the other big names for 2010 can't be quite so open about their aspirations to be Governor. Some of the others won't have the public position that will keep them in the press.

O'Connell captured 2.1 million votes in June, or 52.4 percent of the vote in a six-candidate contest, without bothering to wage a paid campaign. That took care of current political business.

Villaraigosa, on the other hand, cannot overtly talk about aspirations for governor, since he must run for re-election as mayor in 2009. Ditto for Newsom in San Francisco in 2007.

Garamendi, Lockyer and Brown have to spend this fall focused on their own campaigns for state office. Westly will leave office in January and will be a private citizen for the next four years.

That leaves O'Connell, for the moment, as the first and only potential 2010 gubernatorial candidate free to talk about the possibilities.

Despite all my problems with Jack's education leadership in the state, I believe he is a very smart guy. He has excellent political skills which have served him well in years past. There is no reason to believe that he won't make a serious run for the Governor's office and with his unique position, we're probably going to hear lots from him over the next 4 years about why he'd make a great governor. Too bad he can't spend more of that energy on real education reform.