Ex-Gov. Locke likely to be tapped for Commerce

Former Washington State Gov. Gary Locke (D) is likely to be President Obama’s third pick for Commerce Secretary, according to media reports late Monday.

{mosads}Locke, who served as governor of the Evergreen State from 1997 to 2005, would follow New Mexico Gov. Bill Richardson (D), who withdrew his nomination over a lawsuit that threatened to embroil his administration, and Sen. Judd Gregg (R-N.H.), who withdrew his nomination after policy disagreements with the administration came to light.

Locke spent two terms governing Washington during a period of economic expansion, though his popularity waned during his final years in office. The first Chinese-American governor, Locke gave the Democratic response to President Bush’s 2003 State of the Union address.

Now a lawyer in the Seattle office of the Davis Wright Tremaine lawfirm, Locke had been mentioned as a potential candidate for Interior secretary,though that post later went to Sen. Ken Salazar (D-Colo.). Calls to Locke’s Seattle office late Monday went unreturned.