EVERETT — Snohomish County Republican leader Geri Modrell plans to go to Issaquah this morning where she expects to hear Dino Rossi declare his candidacy for governor.
“We’ve all been waiting with bated breath for this announcement,” said Modrell, chairwoman of the county GOP. “We plan to take the day off and celebrate.”
Rossi is scheduled to make an announcement regarding his political future at 10 a.m. at the Village Theatre in downtown Issaquah, from the same stage where he launched his last run for governor in November 2003.
That race ended as the closest gubernatorial election in state history, with Democrat Christine Gregoire ruled the winner by just 133 votes, following two recounts and a court case triggered when Rossi contested the results.
A rematch has been anticipated almost from the moment Rossi lost the legal fight.
For him to win this time will require duplicating the success he achieved in Snohomish County the last time, several county political figures said Wednesday. Voters will decide in November 2008.
In 2004, Rossi won the popular vote in Snohomish County, the first time a Republican gubernatorial candidate accomplished that feat in 20 years.
He outpolled Gregoire by 6,439 votes, finishing with 49.9 percent to her 47.7 percent.
Making that more impressive is that in the county, Democratic presidential candidate John Kerry won 53 percent of the vote and the party’s incumbent U.S. Sen. Patty Murray won 55 percent.
Snohomish County wasn’t the only place Rossi surprised the Democratic establishment.
He also won in the party’s stronghold of Pierce County.
Frauna Hoglund, who ran the Snohomish County Republican Party in 2004, said the reason for Rossi’s success was simple then and will be the case again this time.
“People liked Rossi. People liked his message,” she said.
Paul Elvig, a former Snohomish County GOP chairman, said Rossi maintained strong ties to the county and set up a solid organization.
But he warned that the campaign will need an updated message to go with an invigorated effort to do as well. Snohomish County is not the same place as 2004 — the population has increased, the economy has improved and the Democrats have gained in political strength.
“He cannot run a carbon copy of 2004 and hope to win in by a few more votes in 2008,” he said.
In 2004, Rossi did not emerge as the top vote-getter in Snohomish County until Election Day.
Results show Gregoire led among mail ballot voters only to see Rossi out gain her by a wider margin among poll voters.
Elvig attributed that to a late-peaking campaign fueled by a barrage of good television ads and a strong get-out-the vote effort.
Mark Hintz, chairman of the Snohomish County Democratic Party, all but vowed the Republican hopeful would not achieve similar success in 2008.
“I think he won it in 2004 because he campaigned a lot up here,” said Hintz, who was not the county party leader then. “I think the governor will make her presence known this time.”
Rossi won votes from conservative and moderate Democrats.
Democratic County Executive Aaron Reardon said Rossi struck a chord with them because he made himself sound more like a Clinton New Democrat than a stalwart Republican, with talk of fiscal conservatism and re-inventing government.
“I wasn’t surprised. He’s very capable of crafting a message,” said Reardon, who served with Rossi in the state Legislature.
This time around Rossi will need to focus on Gregoire’s service. And in Snohomish County, it’s been good, he said.
“Chris Gregoire has done well by Snohomish County in the last three years. I think she has a record to run on,” Reardon said.
Gregoire has amassed more than $3 million for a re-election campaign but has not yet formally announced.
Reporter Jerry Cornfield: 360-352-8623 or jcornfieldheraldnet.com.
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