The Attorney General, California’s top cop job seems to be a very coveted position. It also appears that everyone believes that the current Attorney General, Jerry Brown, is going to run for higher office and there will be a vacancy in this post. At least four sitting members of the legislature are seeking this office. Below is a brief overview of those individuals that have taken action to prepare for the 2010 elections:

Democratic Candidates
Pedro Nava – the author of CSU’s Doctorate in Nursing measure - AB 867 Assembly Member Nava previously served as a former deputy district attorney in Fresno, and also served on the California Coastal Commission. Pedro Nava's public service career has focused on working to preserve, protect, and improve the quality of life in California. As a deputy district attorney, a member of the California Coastal Commission, and his tenure in the California State Assembly, Pedro has concentrated on the fight on public safety, protecting natural resources, restoring economic stability, advocating for consumer rights and defending civil rights. Mr. Nava is a graduated of California State University, San Bernardino, and obtained his law degree from the University of California, Davis' Martin Luther King Jr. School of Law.
Campaign Website

Alberto Torrico - represents the 20th Assembly District which includes Fremont, Newark, Union City and Milpitas among other cities in the East Bay. He serves as the Assembly’s Majority Leader, one of the key legislative positions in Speaker Karen Bass’ leadership team. Assembly member Torrico is currently authoring AB 656, a bill that would impose an oil and gas severance tax for the purposes of creating funding for higher education institutions. Torrico’s focus as Attorney General will be to fight for tougher laws as they relate to gang activity and drug trafficking, protecting children from sexual predators and working with state, federal and local officials to help stop the tide of foreclosures that are decimating so many California communities. Born to a father of Bolivian descent and a mother of Japanese descent, Mr. Torrico has the unique claim of belonging to two both the Latino and the Asian Pacific Islander Caucus.
Campaign Website

Ted Lieu - Was elected to the 53 Assembly District replacing his mentor late Mike Gordon, representing Torrance. Ted Lieu has focused his efforts recently to fight to reform the subprime mortgage system and has repeatedly taken on special interests and successfully authored laws in the areas of public safety, child sex offenders, domestic violence, the environment, education and health care.He too also serves as a part of Speaker Bass’ leadership team in the capacity of Chair of the Assembly Rules Committee. Campaign Website

Joe Canciamilla - The former state Assembly’s Chair of the Moderate Caucus is also considering attorney general in 2010. While in the Assembly, Mr. Canciamilla teamed up with Dr. Keith Richman a moderate Republican from the San Fernando Valley on a number of policy issues. Canciamilla has stated that if elected he plans to focus on relationships with local governments, crime prevention, protecting seniors and reducing the amount of white collar crime. Canciamilla is a lawyer and also runs his family’s Pittsburg funeral home.

Kamala Harris – Ms. Harris became the first female District Attorney to be elected in San Francisco, and the first African American elected as District Attorney in California. Her pledge as Attorney General is to move beyond the false choice of being "tough" or "weak" on crime and concentrate on putting more violent and serious felons in state prison, cracking down on gang and gun violence, and protecting neighborhoods from drug dealers and quality of life crimes. A graduate of Howard University and University of California, Hastings College of the Law, Ms. Harris served as Deputy District Attorney in Alameda County, before serving as the Managing Attorney of the Career Criminal Unit in the San Francisco District Attorney's Office.
Campaign Website

Rocky Delgadillo - Mr. Delgadillo ran against Jerry Brown in 2006 and spent almost $3 million. His top priorities include fighting crime, improving the quality of life in cities’ neighborhoods and reducing the state civil liabilities. A graduate of Harvard College, and Columbia Law School he served in the administration of Mayor Richard Riordan, eventually becoming deputy mayor for economic development.
Campaign Website

Chris Kelly – The former Chief Privacy Officer at Facebook is also considering a run for Statewide office. While he has worked as an attorney dealing with privacy and technology issues, he also served as an education advisor in the Clinton Administration. Mr. Kelly hopes to bring his longstanding public policy, legal and business experience to the critical role of the state's chief law enforcement and consumer protection officer. As Attorney General, he hopes to bring his experience creating jobs and a safer and more trusted online experience to the table. Mr. Kelly earned a bachelor’s degree from Georgetown University, a master’s from Yale University and a J.D. from Harvard Law School. Campaign Website

Republican Candidates
Tom Harman – Senator Harman currently represents the people of the 35th Senate District. After having served six years on the Huntington Beach City Council, Harman was elected to the State Assembly in 2000, and was re-elected in 2002 and 2004 by overwhelming majorities. In 2006 he was elected to the Senate in a special election and then reelected in 2008.

Tom Harman believes that the job of the Attorney General is to protect all of California's citizens, not only from violent crime, but from white-collar criminals who victimize our families and betray our trust. And as a tough fiscal conservative, Tom Harman plans to demand accountability in government and vigorously prosecute those who commit fraud with public funds. Senator Harman earned a Bachelor of Science in Business Administration from Kansas State University and Loyola Law School in Los Angeles.
Campaign Website

Chuck Poochigian – Former State Senator and Assembly member Chuck Poochigian is rumored to be interested in again running for this office, after being beaten by Jerry Brown three years ago. Mr. Poochigian is considered a strong advocate of business and agriculture in California, a champion of fair and limited taxation and minimal government regulation, and a defender of rural and Central Valley communities with regard to equitable distribution of resources for infrastructure improvements, and adequate health care delivery. Poochigian's former race for Attorney General was characterized as one of the most aggressive and creative down-ballot races in 2006. The campaign was featured by The Wall Street Journal and others for its use of emerging technology, such as MySpace, YouTube, and other online mediums, to reach out to voters and mobilize activists. A graduate of Fresno State and Santa Clara University’s School of Law, Poochigian served as Governor Deukmejian’s Chief Deputy Appointments Secretary. He then went on to serve as Governor Pete Wilson’s Appointments Secretary.