The panel of political pundits was waxing on and on about the 2010 statewide races when a disgruntled old chap in the audience raised his hand. "We just finished one election.  Do we have to talk about another one right now?" he bemoaned.

     The answer is yes, but you don't have to listen or read for that matter.  So if you don't want to know who is the first GOP candidate running for Secretary of State, get off this blog right here and now.  Bye-bye.

     If you are sticking around, say hello to Anne Norlander.

     For the past twenty years she's been Calhoun County Clerk and despite the democratic tsunamis at the polls last month, she was one of only two republicans that was not washed out to sea.  In fact she actually beat Barack Obama in the county by 8,000 votes.

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     Norlander has flirted with running for the SOS job for years, but now the flirtation stops because the incumbent Terri Lynn Land can't run again.

     Norlander is a bit of an anomaly in the state GOP in that she operates mostly out of the middle of the political spectrum while most others reside to the right of that.

     She won't call herself a moderate per se but admits to having appeal to republicans, democrats and independents which, of course, is what moderate candidates do.

     "I'm not big labeler," she confesses but adds, "I appreciate all points of view."  Very diplomatic and designed not to offend anyone in her party.

      So she becomes the first of many SOS contenders and you're the first to find out..unless you bailed out earlier. 

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