UPDATE: Don't actually expect Nixon to publicly "announce" his re-election kickoff on Nov. 30, says Nixon campaign spokesman Jack Cardetti. While it is true that his first official fund-raiser for the 2012 campaign is that day, Nixon won't be officially announcing anything at that fund-raiser, Cardetti said, in response to the blog post. "The governor will be holding a few fund-raisers around the state at this time and that is the first one," Cardetti said. Asked when Nixon would "officially" announce his campaign, Cardetti said he didn't know.

 

JEFFERSON CITY -- Gov. Jay Nixon is seeking "a small army" of young Democratic volunteers for his re-election kickoff, according to an email that went out to St. Louis Democrats today.

Nixon, who has been increasing his public appearances lately and already reaching out to fund-raisers in advance of the 2012 election, is planning to kick off his campaign Nov. 30 at the Majestic Ballroom of the Renaissance Grand Hotel in downtown St. Louis, according to the email.

"We need need a small army of people to help with Governor Nixon's 2012 Re-elect kick off," said the e-mail.

Nixon is likely to face Lt. Gov. Peter Kinder in the race for governor, though Kinder has been coy about his intentions. He recently told former Post-Dispatch scribe Jerry Berger that he is definitely running for governor.

Nixon will start the race with a large cash advantage, having more than $1 million on hand according to the most recent ethics commission filing.

There's a little irony in the location of the kickoff event at the Washington Avenue hotel. Nixon has been pushing reform to the state system of development tax credits, and the hotel, and much of Washington Avenue, is an example of the sort of downtown redevelopment that has been a beneficiary of tax credits.

Nixon's commission is meeting today and tomorrow. Follow Tim Logan's coverage of the commission meetings here.