Absolutely no surprise here. State Sen. Terri Bonoff, DFL-Minnetonka, will run for another term in the Legislature and will not seek the DFL nomination to challenge U.S. Erik Paulsen, the freshman Republican who represents the west suburban Third Congressional District.

Dr. Maureen Hackett of Minnetonka, a psychiatrist and Air force vet, and Jim Meffert of Edina, former state president of the PTA and chief lobbyist for Minnesota optometrists, are actively seeking (and have pledged to abide by) the DFL endorsement for the opportunity to challenge Paulsen, who is seeking a second term and who is rated as only slightly vulnerable. (For example, CQ calls the race "leans Republican," and the Rothenberg Political Report calls it "Republican favored," which is the least competitive category you can get if you are not rated as a safe bet to hold your seat.)

The only reason I am posting about Bonoff's announcement is that she had never made it definitive before and the last time checked with her (two months ago when Meffert and Hackett got in), she said she was still thinking about it but would let me know when she made a final decision.

Bonoff, who is considered a moderate, pro-business Democrat (at least by DFL standards) holds a Senate seat formerly held by a Republican. She sought the DFL endorsement for the Congressional seat in 2008, when the seat was open after the retirement of Jim Ramstad. She lost an endorsement battle to newcomer Ashwin Madia and declined to run in the primary. She said she was recruited by the Democratic Congressional Campaign Commitee for the 2010 race.

When she called over the weekend to fulfill her ancient promise to let me know her final decision, Bonoff said that she had continued to keep an open mind about a congressional bid until recently, when it was simply getting too late to start and time for her to start campaigning to keep her Senate seat. She said she values her opportunity for public service highly and decided not to risk it on the always dicey prospect of taking on a congressional incumbent. The recent Republican surge in the overall national political environment was a factor in her calculations as well. Bonoff said she would remain neutral in the Hackett-Meffert contest and is likewise not backing anyone in the race for the DFL endorsement for guv.