Franks decides against gov. run

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http://www.nwherald.com/articles/2009/09/25/r_hpprlr4ztbudylw6tgunaw/index.xml

State Rep. Jack Franks will seek a seventh term in 2010 rather than run for governor.

Franks, D-Marengo, said that while his polling concluded that he would have a good shot at winning the seat, he decided that he was not ready to make his wife, Debbie, “a single mom for the next 17 months,” or uproot his two teenage sons, Sam, 14, and Henry, 13, during their high school years.

“This is really the last opportunity I’m going to have to be a hands-on parent, and I figure that if I screw up raising my kids, I’ve screwed up everything, so I want to get that job right,” Franks said.

The decision ends speculation about a Franks gubernatorial run that began years ago with his loud and frequent criticisms of former Gov. Rod Blagojevich.

It began in earnest after Blagojevich’s arrest in December on federal corruption charges and Franks’ role in his impeachment.

Talk of a Franks candidacy subsequently increased when Attorney General Lisa Madigan, considered a favorite for either governor or the U.S. Senate seat held by political pariah Roland Burris, decided instead to seek a third term. While Franks has been a longtime political ally of Gov. Pat Quinn, he has grown publicly critical of how Quinn handled the state budget crisis and opportunities to reform state government after Blagojevich’s ouster.