Avedisian says possible LG run in 2014 hinges on talks with Chafee

Trying to guess when Warwick Mayor Scott Avedisian will run for a different office remains one of the persistent parlor games in Rhode Island politics.

Avedisian, a very popular vote-getter in the state’s second-largest city, guested during a taping today of RIPR’s Political Roundtable, so I asked whether he might take a run for lieutenant governor in 2014. The Republican mayor offered some boilerplate: “I’m open to all possibilities [and] haven’t made any decisions for the future yet.”

Yet when asked how serious his interest in LG might be, Avedisian was more candid, referring to his close friend, Lincoln Chafee:

It would all depend on what kind of an agreement I could work with the governor as to what my duties might be. That would actually mean that you have people serving together that want to be together  and want to work together — and that could be very interesting.

Indeed.

(For Avedisian’s take on the legislative outlook for cities and towns, the New Hampshire primary, and more, tune to Roundtable at 5:40 or 7:40 Friday during Morning Edition, or listen online.)

Lieutenant Governor Elizabeth Roberts, like most Democrats, opposes GOP efforts to have the governor and LG run on the same ticket. Supporters say the concept would save the state money. (It would also help Republicans, since they’ve held the governor’s office for much of the last 25 years.)

Avedisian has called Chafee his political soul-mate, so if they held companion offices, it would make for a distinctive dynamic.

Of course, Chafee would first have to win another term as governor, and Avedisian would have to overcome the longstanding moderate-conservative rift in the state GOP.

[Photo: scottavedisian.com]