Wrestling CEO, state school board rep eyes national Senate seat

Written by Ken Borsuk
Friday, 04 September 2009 15:39

The next entrant in the royal rumble known as the 2010 U.S. Senate race could well be World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE) CEO Linda McMahon.

In a statement recently released by WWE, it was revealed that the Greenwich resident is “considering” a run for the seat against sitting U.S. Senator Chris Dodd, a longtime Democratic incumbent considered vulnerable for the first time in years. Ms. McMahon did not specify if the run is being considered for the Republican nomination or as an independent, but Ms. McMahon is a registered Republican.

In the statement and in a subsequent conversation with WWE Vice President of Corporate Communications Robert Zimmerman, it was stressed that Ms. McMahon has made no decision about a run for the seat. Through WWE, Ms. McMahon declined an interview with The Greenwich Post, The Pilot’s sister newspaper, saying she didn’t want to make additional statements until she had made a decision.

If she does enter the race, Ms. McMahon could well face a crowded field of candidates seeking the Republican nomination. Former U.S. Congressman Rob Simmons, who was defeated in his re-election to the 43rd District in 2006, is considered the front-runner, and Greenwich resident Tom Foley, a former ambassador to Ireland under President George W. Bush, is also in the race and has pulled in $573,000 by fund-raising since beginning his campaign on June 3. Mr. Foley also worked in Iraq to try and revive the country’s post-war economy and was given the Department of Defense’s Distinguished Public Service award for his work.

State Senator Sam Caligiuri (R-16), the former mayor of Waterbury and current deputy minority leader of the Senate’s Republican caucus, is also in the race. Peter Schiff, a libertarian financier who served on the presidential campaign last year of Texas Congressman Ron Paul, is also considering entering the race for the Republican nomination. Additionally, Mr. Dodd also faces a Democratic challenge from former Greenwich resident Merrick Alpert, who now lives in Mystic.

Ms. McMahon is currently a member of the state’s Board of Education after being nominated by Gov. M. Jodi Rell and then approved by the state Legislature. In that nomination, Ms. McMahon received the unanimous backing of Greenwich’s legislative delegation.

Should Ms. McMahon decide to run for the seat, she would step away from her daily duties at WWE. Her husband, Vince McMahon, who already serves as the company’s chairman and is responsible for overseeing its creative direction, would assume her work as CEO of the publicly traded company.