One of the people floated as a possible replacement for state Attorney General Kamala Harris is Burlingame trial lawyer and Democratic Party heavyweight Joe Cotchett.
Cotchett confirmed Thursday that — with Harris expected to prevail in her Senate campaign against Rep. Loretta Sanchez, D-Orange — Gov. Jerry Brown is considering him for the post.
“I’m very honored that Jerry called me a couple times and discussed with me the potential,” said Cotchett, 77, whose firm, which has represented San Jose against Major League Baseball and San Bruno fire victims against PG&E, generated more headlines in September for suing Wells Fargo over the bank’s phony-account scandal.
Other names in the running include Alameda County District Attorney Nancy O’Malley and Los Angeles County District Attorney Jackie Lacey, according to former San Francisco Mayor Willie Brown in his column for the San Francisco Chronicle.
If tapped, Cotchett said he would focus considerable energy on corporate fraud and the influence of Wall Street schemes on mainstream society. He said he wouldn’t make decisions based on which way the political wind is blowing.
“I’m not afraid to offend anybody,” he said.
If he doesn’t get the nod, he said he will consider mounting a campaign in 2018. If he were to run, Cotchett said he wouldn’t accept contributions and, as first reported by Politico, would throw $10 million of his own money into the race.
“If I run,” he said, “I can tell you this: I’m gonna win.”
