Minneapolis Mayor R.T. Rybak, D, who was just re-elected on Tuesday to a third term, already has his sights set on a higher office. Rybak filed the paperwork for a run for governor in 2010, jumping to the top of a long list of candidates in the Democratic field.

Rybak announced the move in an e-mail to supporters Thursday evening. "Filing these papers is the first step in the process of setting up the Rybak for Governor campaign," he wrote. "In the weeks ahead, we will be building a grassroots campaign to take our message to every corner of the state."

The popular mayor has not been shy about expressing his interest in the race, and has already participated in several gubernatorial candidate events, so the announcement comes as no surprise. Local observers expect him to be a formidable candidate, but not a shoo-in for the Democratic nomination.

Minnesota House Speaker Margaret Anderson Kelliher is joining the race for governor in what looks likely to be the most crowded political contest of the 2010 cycle.

Kelliher, a Democrat, announced on a new campaign Web site Thursday that she had filed the paperwork for a campaign. In a message to supporters, she said she had the experience, commitment and coalition-building skills to lead the state out of its economic struggles. A formal campaign announcement will come in "a few weeks," she said.

Kelliher has one of the highest profiles among a number of Democrats already in the race. The field includes former U.S. Sen. Mark Dayton and former state House Minority Leader Matt Entenza; state Sens. John Marty and Tom Bakk; state Reps. Paul Thissen and Tom Rukavina; and Ramsey County Attorney Susan Gaertner.

State Rep. Paul Thissen, a Democrat, will officially announce his 2010 run for governor of Minnesota Thursday, his campaign committee revealed in a press release.

The event, at Thissen's home in Minneapolis, will confirm a bid that already appeared certain, as the candidate formed an exploratory campaign committee in November.

A Harvard University graduate, Thissen boasts experience in both the private and public sectors as an attorney, four-term state legislator and current chairman of the state House Health and Human Services Committee.

But he is joining a Democratic lineup that already contains declared candidates with higher profiles in statewide politics, including Mark Dayton, who represented Minnesota in the U.S. Senate from 2001 to 2007, and former state House Minority Leader Matt Entenza. And the field could grow crowded with others, as the parties prepare for a competitive contest to succeed retiring two-term Republican Gov. Tim Pawlenty.

There will be no political comeback in 2010 for former Republican Rep. Jim Ramstad.

Ramstad's admission last month that he was considering a run for the open Minnesota governor seat stirred up considerable buzz, but he quashed that Wednesday evening with an e-mail to local press announcing he would not be mounting a campaign.

Ramstad gave no reason for the decision, telling supporters just that he was "humbled by the tremendous outpouring of support from people across party lines" for a potential run. He also said he planned "to continue in public service," just not as governor.

Republican state Rep. Paul Kohls is the latest to enter the 2010 race for Minnesota governor -- joining a roster of candidates that has grown quickly since GOP incumbent Tim Pawlenty announced on June 2 that he will not run for a third term.

Kohls, who is in his fourth state House term and sits on the chamber's finance and tax committees, announced his candidacy on Thursday. He said in a statement that his campaign will focus "on issues of fiscal responsibility and limited government."

"We need to do a much better job setting priorities," said the resident of Victoria, located in the western exurbs of Minnesota's Twin Cities.

The campaign announcements for Minnesota's 2010 governor's race keep rolling in.

State Sen. Tom Bakk told the Mesabi Daily News that he will officially kick-off his campaign for the Democratic nomination this week. And former GOP state Rep. Bill Haas plans to announce his campaign on Wednesday, the AP reports. Republican state Sen. Paul Koering is also considering a run.

Bakk, who has been mulling a run for the past year, is the only Democratic candidate thus far from the Iron Range region, in rural northeast Minnesota.

Despite abandoning his own 2010 re-election bid earlier this week, Minnesota Gov. Tim Pawlenty maintains that the Republican party as a whole needs to focus on next year's elections rather than look ahead to 2012.

"We need to make sure that we have ideas that matter, that help people ,that are consistent with values and principles," he said in an interview with the Ripon Forum, a publication of the Republican policy group the Ripon Society. "So nobody should be looking ahead to 2012."

And Pawlenty has plenty of advice for what type of ideas the party should embrace.

It's been less than 24 hours since Republican Gov. Tim Pawlenty announced he would not seek re-election and already dozens of names are being floated as possible successors. But it was House Minority Leader Marty Seifert who made the first concrete move with an announcement Wednesday that he would step down from his leadership role in the state House as he considers a gubernatorial run.

Seifert told reporters he was "very serious" about the governor's race but has to "find out if the initial support is there."

"Right now I'm feeling very good about the support that's there," he added. Seifert said he expects to make a decision in the next few months.

Republican Tim Pawlenty will announce this summer whether he plans to run in 2010 for a third term as governor of Minnesota.

Pawlenty discussed this timeline -- and the pros and cons factoring into his candidacy decision -- during an interview with Minnesota Public Radio host Cathy Wurzer Thursday. "I've got a lot of energy and ideas left for leadership and service, but that has to be weighed against making sure you don't overstay your welcome," Pawlenty said on the network's Morning Edition program.

Pawlenty said "family considerations and career considerations and a bunch of other factors" will ultimately determine whether he runs for governor or pursues another career path.

U.S. Rep. Keith Ellison endorsed fellow Democrat and longtime friend Matt Entenza for Minnesota governor on Monday.

In a letter released by the campaign, Ellison wrote, "Matt will be the strong partner we need to make our work in Congress bear fruit back home in Minnesota. With Matt's help, we can pass health care for all and develop the clean energy economy."

The endorsement was not surprising, given the fact that the second-term congressman and the gubernatorial candidate have been friends since their days as law students at the University of Minnesota. Ellison and Entenza also served in the state legislature together earlier this decade -- and both hold strong progressive policy stances.