WSFA 12 News Montgomery, AL |Experts: Indictment makes campaign harder for Siegelman

Experts: Indictment makes campaign harder for Siegelman

MONTGOMERY, Ala. (AP)_Former Governor Don Siegelman returned to the campaign trial immediately after pleading not guilty to government corruption charges, vowing: "I won't quit this race for governor."

But political experts in Alabama say wooing campaign donations and votes won't be easy in his situation.

David Lanoue, chairman of the political science department at the University of Alabama, says the charges will make it harder for Siegelman in every possible way. Lanoue says having the cloud of indictment over you in a campaign is devastating.

Siegelman faces Lt. Governor Lucy Baxley in the Democratic primary on June Sixth. On the Republican side, Governor Bob Riley is up against former Chief Justice Roy Moore.

For Alabama voters, it will be an unprecedented campaign.

For the first time, they will see a politician fight for the governor's office and fight against government corruption charges at the same time.

Political scientist Jess Brown of Athens State University says Siegelman's indictment may cause other Democrats to look at entering the race, but if no one else gets in, then the indictment benefits Baxley.

Siegelman's latest legal troubles began Wednesday, when a federal grand jury in Montgomery indicted him, two of his former Cabinet members, and former HealthSouth Chairman Richard Scrushy on government corruption charges.

Siegelman is accused of soliciting more than one (m) million dollars for himself and his campaigns in return for political favors.

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