Trustee Perles to decide on governor bid by year's end

MSU Trustee George Perles said Monday he will decide by the end of the year whether he wants to make his candidacy for governor official. Perles has expressed interest in running in the 2010 gubernatorial election several times during the past year.

“We will decide if we are going to do it by Jan. 1,” Perles said, despite a report in Monday’s Detroit News that he will begin campaigning Jan. 1.

Perles, a former MSU football coach, said although he has received a lot of support for his candidacy, he will continue to gauge the interest of Michigan citizens until he makes an official decision.

The 75-year-old Democrat has been a trustee since November 2006. He said there is a lot of “carryover” from the football field that would help a chief executive of the state.

“It’s like a big team — the state of Michigan,” Perles said. “We have to get everybody going in the same direction, and not be pointing the finger at mistakes. If we do make mistakes, we should just move onto the next challenge.”

If Perles does decide to run, experts said his lack of political experience is a concern.

“It’s quite a leap to go from coach to trustee to governor,” said Craig Ruff, senior policy fellow at Public Sector Consultants, a policy research group in Lansing.

Ruff said Perles’ responsibilities as a trustee and coach are very different than the responsibilities of a governor.

“Clearly, the leadership ability is high on the list of qualities we look for (in a governor),” he said. “But whether they are helming a football team, athletic department or the governorship, it’s not the normal transition to go from the field into public life.”

Other democrats interested in primary candidacy include Mich. Lt. Gov. John Cherry, state Rep. Alma Wheeler Smith, of Salem, Mich., former Flint Mayor Don Williamson and former state Rep. John Freeman, of Madison Heights, Mich. Possible Republican candidates include Attorney General Mike Cox, U.S. Rep. Pete Hoekstra, of Holland, Mich., Oakland County Sheriff Mike Bouchard and state Sen. Tom George, of Kalamazoo, according to EPIC-MRA, a public policy polling group in Lansing.

Ken Hoffman, who founded the Little Ceasars Pizza Bowl — formerly the Motor City Bowl — with Perles, said Perles established himself as a leader in Michigan through his work at MSU.

“If the state is looking for a leader, and somebody who can recruit new business to the state of Michigan, you won’t find a better leader, a better recruiter than George,” Hoffman said.

Perles said his biggest priorities are the economy and education. He said he would create new tax incentives for businesses and try to keep education affordable.

Fellow MSU Trustee Colleen McNamara said Perles’ résumé would bring a lot to the governorship.

“He would bring a real interesting skill set to the run as well if he were elected,” she said, “He is very goal oriented, and he knows how to motivate people to do things. He’s very much in touch with teamwork.”