Pringle, Mindful of Term Limits, Mulls Run for Controller

SACRAMENTO —  Assembly Republican Leader Curt Pringle said Thursday that he is giving serious consideration to a run for state controller.

Pringle, a Garden Grove conservative who held the Assembly speaker’s gavel until the GOP lost control of the lower house last November, will be forced out of his current post in 1998 by term limits.

He has been getting encouragement from friends in the Assembly Republican caucus, business leaders, Orange County community activists and members of the governor’s staff to consider a run for controller, a post currently held by Democrat Kathleen Connell.

“I have been encouraged to look at a lot of things, but this [controller] has a lot of appeal, and it’s something I certainly have interest in,” Pringle said. “I’m getting direct encouragement to stay in California, run statewide and focus on my strengths, which are fiscal issues.”

Pringle has also been mentioned as a potential candidate for Congress and has previously expressed interest in running for the state Board of Equalization or returning to Orange County to vie for a supervisor’s seat.

While he acknowledges that he needs to “be prepared to take the next step” into a different political office, Pringle may not be making a formal announcement for several months.

Under state law, candidates cannot set up new campaign committees until early June. In addition, Pringle is facing pressure from some Republican foes eager to topple him as Assembly GOP leader. If he announced for another office, it could provide them ammunition to suggest he needs to step down from the top post.