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Quietly, Bush opens campaign headquarters
© St. Petersburg Times, TALLAHASSEE -- Gov. Jeb Bush has quietly opened a campaign headquarters in a Tallahassee house that once housed a massage business. The small brick house, former home of Health and Harmony, sits just a block from Florida Republican Party headquarters at 501 E College Ave. and just down the street from the Florida Press Center, home to most of the state's newspapers. The only indication that it's the governor's campaign office is the presence of "JEB!" bumper stickers on a handful of cars parked in back. They answer the telephone "Bush 2002." Bush has opened a campaign account and said he will seek re-election, but has not yet hit the campaign trail as a candidate. He is hoping to become the first Republican governor to gain a second term. Former governors Claude Kirk and Bob Martinez failed in re-election bids in 1970 and 1990. Bush supporters have been gathering in small groups to work on fundraising and re-election plans. Karen Unger, former director of external affairs for the governor's office, is the manager of this year's campaign. She is working out of the office, in a small room where massages were once offered to the tune of relaxing music. Other staffers in the office include Martha Pratt, Mike Hanna and Sarah Cunningham. But Unger says more will be added soon. So far they have no scheduled campaign events. Sally Bradshaw, the governor's former chief of staff, and Cory Tilley, a former deputy chief of staff, who will serve as outside consultants. Bradshaw managed Bush's 1994 and 1998 campaigns with Tilley at her side to handle media relations. Bush is not likely to face serious Republican opposition, but Democrats are lining up to take him on in the wake of last year's presidential recount which saw his brother win an extremely close presidential race. Former U.S. Attorney Janet Reno; former Ambassador to Vietnam Pete Peterson; Sen. Daryl Jones, D-Miami; Rep. Lois Frankel, D-West Palm Beach; and Bill McBride, former managing partner at Holland & Knight law firm, are among the candidates eying the Democratic nomination.
 © 2006 • All Rights Reserved • St. Petersburg Times
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From the Times state desk
From the state wire
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