Rep. Jane Harman Likely to Resign from Congress

[The_Dude 1,142]

Rep. Jane Harman Likely to Resign from Congress

There is a surprising development in Congress today. Rep. Jane Harman, D-Calif., is likely to announce she will resign from office.

Harman’s likely departure was first reported by NBC News, which also reported she would leave Congress to head the Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars.

No formal announcement has been made by Harman’s office, but her impending likely resignation was confirmed to ABC by Democratic sources on Capitol Hill.

The Woodrow Wilson Center Board of Trustees has scheduled a meeting on Tuesday morning to make a decision on the new president. The board is set to make a formal announcement after the meeting, a spokesman for the center told ABC News.

The LA Times published parts of an email that Harman was apparently planning to send to supporters announcing the resignation.

What is not yet clear is when her resignation will take effect. The email printed in the LA Times suggested she would stay for several weeks. Complicating the resignation will be redistricting. Harman’s district in Southern California is a safe Democratic seat in the Los Angeles area. But it was once a very competitive.

First elected in 1992, Harman served until 1998, when she left Congress for a failed bid to become California’s governor. She lost the Democratic primary to then-Lt. Governor Gray Davis. Harman returned to Congress, defeating the Republican who replaced her, in 2000. Harman is a moderate Democrat and member of the fiscally conservative Blue Dog coalition and is relatively hawkish on defense issues. She is a former ranking member of the House Intelligence Committee. She is also one of the richest members of Congress. Her husband Sidney Harman founded the audio company Harman/Kardon and last year bought Newsweek Magazine.

Democratic strategists do not think the seat will become any more competitive in a special election. Harman won by 25 percent last November and President Obama got more than 60 percent of the vote in 2008. But, its boundaries will most certainly be affected by redistricting in 2012. California’s House districts will be redrawn for the first time this year by a new bipartisan commission.

This means a candidate could easily win a special election in 2011 and then go on to face a very different electorate under new district lines in 2012.

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[Trompe le Monde 1,107]

Do they will re-district from deepest blue to deeper blue?

Considering the very poor quality of challengers for Harmon in the past couple elections I really don't think much will change. The Republican who ran last time didn't even live here.

[The_Dude 1,142]

Do they will re-district from deepest blue to deeper blue?

Considering the very poor quality of challengers for Harmon in the past couple elections I really don't think much will change. The Republican who ran last time didn't even live here.

The republicans don't even have a headquarters for any of the west. los angeles districts.