PHOENIX (By Chip Scutari, Arizona Republic) October 15, 2005 — Senate President Ken Bennett on Friday became the latest Republican to steer clear of a potential match up against Gov. Janet Napolitano in the 2006 election.

Bennett's decision puts former state Department of Transportation Director Mary Peters in the limelight as the newest possible GOP challenger. Peters, who has never run for public office, is largely unknown and untested. GOP insiders expect her to jump into the race by month's end. She would join two other declared candidates: former Senate President John Greene and former state employee Don Goldwater.

Many Republicans had been looking to Bennett to challenge Napolitano after a wave of higher-profile would-be candidates, including former Maricopa County Attorney Rick Romley and U.S. Reps. Rick Renzi and J.D. Hayworth took their names out of the running.

In the end, Bennett said it was "very tough" to stay out the statewide race but best for his home state.

"A big part of my heart really wanted to do this," the Prescott Republican said. "I'm convinced that our incumbent governor is out of touch with regular Arizona, and we can do better."

Peters, 56, who recently resigned from her post as federal highway administrator, has generated enthusiasm among party leaders in recent weeks, partly because of the belief she could keep Republican women in the fold against Napolitano. Bert Coleman, a Republican strategist, said Peters has the intangibles to be a "formidable candidate."

"My gut feeling tells me that finally there is a spark in the governor's race," Coleman said. "With public financing, it's going to be the job of the candidate to go out and meet the voters face to face. Mary Peters will shine at that."

A fourth-generation Arizonan, Peters hasn't followed a traditional path to the top. A hog butcher as a young adult, she became a Harley-Davidson enthusiast and started her ADOT career as a secretary before rising through the agency's ranks.

"I'm encouraged and excited about getting in the governor's race, but I want to make sure it's the right decision for my family and Arizona," Peters told The Republic. "My family and I are going to spend a pretty thoughtful, prayerful weekend together and talk about this."

Democrat pollster and political strategist Bob Grossfeld said the prospect of a Napolitano-Peters match up will be "pretty much a snooze" because he feels the governor has given voters no compelling reasons to fire her.

"The vast majority of voters don't know who Mary Peters is, and at this point, don't care who she is," Grossfeld said.

Whoever emerges from the Republican primary will face a tough, smart and popular opponent.

Napolitano is riding shotgun over a growing economy, a $350 million budget surplus and a 70 percent approval rating. She's a popular, pragmatic Democrat who has cut business taxes. In the era of publicly funded elections, Napolitano will have the same amount of campaign cash as her much-lesser-known rivals. Even the election map favors Napolitano. Early voting starts about one month after the September 2006 primary, giving the GOP challenger barely any time to capture the great mass of Arizona's independent voters.

The winner of the 2006 governor's race will have to deal with several complex, pressing issues, such as deterring illegal immigration, educating students who speak foreign languages and attracting high-tech firms to the state.

Most Arizonans won't focus on the governor's race until next summer.

Republican strategists say they have an ace in the hole against Napolitano: a 150,000 voter-registration edge over Democrats across the state. Additionally, they believe potential ballot initiatives, such as a possible ban on gay marriage and a push to make English the state's official language, will drive up turnout for the "value voters," who could be a loyal asset.

Barry Dill, a Napolitano confidant, said Don Goldwater should be the Republican favorite because of his famous last name.

"With Bennett's departure, I have to believe interest in the governor's race will wane, paving the way for the Goldwater relative to win the GOP nomination simply because of his last name," Dill said. "But make no mistake, whomever the opponent, Governor Napolitano will take her re-election race very seriously."