Former Gov. Jeb Bush announced Tuesday he won't run for the U.S. Senate, and opened the door to a potential flurry of candidates.
Bush, the president's brother and Florida's governor from 1999 to 2007, remains a popular politician in the state. However, he explained in an e-mail to supporters that the time wasn't right to run for the Senate seat being vacated by Republican Mel Martinez in 2010.
"To sum it up, in the words of Dr. Stephen Covey, I have decided to put 'First Things First'," Bush wrote. "I will continue to stay involved in the advocacy of a vibrant, growing Republican Party and with it, 21st century conservative solutions to the challenges we face."
Within minutes, speculation began.
Republicans mentioned within GOP circles include former state House Speaker Marco Rubio, Attorney General Bill McCollum, U.S. Rep. Vern Buchanan of Longboat Key, state Senate President Jeff Atwater, U.S. Rep. Connie Mack and state Sen. Mike Haridopolos.
Gov. Charlie Crist has also been mentioned at times, but state Republican insiders say that is an unlikely scenario.
Democrats said to be considering a run include state Chief Financial Officer Alex Sink, U.S. Rep. Kendrick Meek of Miami, U.S. Rep. Allen Boyd of Monticello, state Sen. Dan Gelber of Miami Beach and U.S. Rep. Ron Klein of Boca Raton.
Sink, considered by some to be the most formidable of potential Democratic candidates, had no immediate comment Tuesday.
"She is focused right now on how the Legislature is planning to resolve the record budget deficit," said her spokesman, Kevin Cate.
Martinez announced in December that he would not be seeking a second, six-year term, and Bush immediately became the potential front-runner. Martinez said in a statement Tuesday that he understood Bush's decision not to run.
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