By Sharon Bernstein
SACRAMENTO, Calif. (Reuters) - Politicians in California's capital are jostling to fill the shoes of its charismatic mayor, Kevin Johnson, after the former basketball star who revitalized his home town with a potent mix of boosterism and economic development said he would not seek a third term.
The announcement on Wednesday by Johnson, 49, set the highly political city abuzz, coming just a week after a decades-old allegation resurfaced that while a player for the Phoenix Suns he dated and fondled a teen-aged girl.
"In my two terms in office, I've experienced the highest highs and the lowest lows," Johnson said in announcing his decision. "But I wouldn't change a single moment of it."
Johnson's political adviser, Democratic consultant Steve Maviglio, said the allegation, in a video posted online, was not a factor in the mayor's decision not to seek a third term in a city where no mayor has ever served three times.
A city councilman and frequent critic of Johnson, Steve Hansen, said the mayor's intention not to seek a third term had been known around city hall for some time.
The battle to replace Johnson is sure to be competitive, as contenders, mostly Democrats, face off in a June primary with campaigns likely funded at least in part by competing labor unions.
Hours after Johnson made his announcement, Sacramento City Councilwoman Angelique Ashby tossed her hat into the ring, declaring at the headquarters of the city firefighters union that Sacramento needs to do more to prevent homelessness and reduce crime.
Speculation grew that Darrell Steinberg, former president pro tem of the state senate, would make a bid. Steinberg, who aides and supporters say has not yet decided if he will run, was slated to speak to an influential Democratic group on Thursday afternoon.
Another former lawmaker, County Supervisor Roger Dickinson, a Democrat, is also considering a bid.
Star power and allegations
Johnson, a moderate Democrat in a mostly blue city, made headlines in 2013 when he led a successful campaign to keep the Kings basketball team in town, complete with a new arena that has already spawned other revitalization efforts.
A former president of the U.S. Conference of Mayors, Johnson introduced U.S. President Barack Obama at a meeting earlier this year and has visited the White House. He is married to the education reform advocate Michelle Rhee.
But last week, on the day that ESPN was set to premiere a documentary about Johnson and the Kings, the network pulled the film to add information from a video posted on the sports website Deadspin. It showed a 20-year-old Phoenix police interview of a teen who said Johnson fondled her while he was a star on the Phoenix Suns basketball team.
In a police report and transcript, she described meeting and dating Johnson when she was 16 and he was in his late 20s. She says that although they did not have intercourse, Johnson fondled her.
No charges were ever filed, but the report and transcript have dogged Johnson periodically in his career. Last year, a city worker filed a sexual harassment claim, which the city attorney said was unsubstantiated.
Johnson, however, was recently advised by city lawyers not to hug employees.
Maviglio said Johnson had been "transformational" to the city, a workaday town where politics and agriculture are major businesses that is becoming hip after taking a major hit during the financial crisis.
Ashby, the only woman on the 9-member city council, said she decided to join the race despite a likely onslaught of competition. "This is Sacramento," she said. "There are a lot of former politicians here, a lot of activists and lobbyists and any one of them could jump in. You have to know at your core that this is what you want to do."