Former Speaker Fabian Núñez, who termed out of the state Assembly last fall, has filed paperwork to make a Sacramento comeback as a state senator.
Núñez, 42, was the longest serving speaker of the term-limits era and developed a close relationship with Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger as they teamed together in 2006 to pass landmark global warming legislation, a hike in the minimum wage and a prescription drug package.
In 2008, Núñez pushed a ballot measure, Proposition 93, to extend his and other incumbent lawmakers' terms in office. Voters defeated the initiative at the polls.
This week, he filed paperwork to fill the seat of termed-out Sen. Gil Cedillo in 2010. Cedillo's seat could be vacated even sooner, as the Los Angeles Democrat is running for Congress to replace Rep. Hilda Solis, who President Barack Obama has tapped as labor secretary.
Núñez would be a prohibitive favorite, should he run. His campaign treasury was stuffed with nearly $5 million as of the end of 2008.
The filing could also simply be a place to legally store all that campaign cash. Many former leaders keep accounts open for races in which few if anyone expects them to compete.
For example, former Senate President Pro Tem Don Perata, former Senate GOP leader Dick Ackerman, former Senate GOP leader Jim Brulte and former Assembly Speaker Herb Wesson each have accounts open to run for the Board of Equalization in 2010. Few expect any of them to actually run.
Since he left office, Núñez joined the PR firm Mercury Public Affairs and the board of directors of Zenith National Insurance Corp.
The Núñez family has come upon hard times, as his son, Esteban Armando Núñez, was arrested in December in connection with an Oct. 4 killing.
Fun fact: JoinCalifornia, a site dedicated to California election history, says Núñez, if he does run and win, would be the first speaker to be elected to the state Senate in more than 80 years. The last was Frank F. Merriam.
Who was the last speaker to try? Ex-Speaker James W. Silliman, who ran -- and lost -- in a special election in 1955, according to JoinCalifornia.
Photo: Then-Assembly Speaker Fabian Núñez holds his last press availability at the State Capitol as Speaker of the Assembly, Tuesday May 6, 2008. Credit: Sacramento Bee/ Brian Baer
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