Mark yer calendars! An outfit called California North Coast Media out of Petaluma is hosting what I believe is the very first 2012 Second District Congressional candidates’ debate Wednesday night, 6-8 p.m. They’re sending this thing out to all interested media and they’ve promised me some embed codes, so we’re going to see if we can simulcast it here on the LoCO.

Now, one thing that the CNCM announcement has alerted me to is that a Republican has entered the race. Dan Roberts’ Web page lists some pretty decent credibility-making stats – Vietnam-era Marine captain, CEO of a San Francisco investment firm, former president of the San Francisco Better Business Bureau – though the overall impression is more-or-less Tea Partyish. What with the six-way melee on the Democratic side in this, the first of our nonpartisan Congressional primaries, I’m guessing that he has upwards of a 50 percent chance of making it to November, so long as no other Republican throws in.

The race is so interesting, all the way around. It seems like each of the Democratic candidates is staking out their territory on the left: Jared Huffman on the environment, Susan Adams on health care, Norman Solomon on everything normansolomonic, Dr. Bill Courtney on … well, you know. The biggest surprise to date has probably been the Solomon Surge, wherein the veteran activist/intellectual seems to have actually put together a pretty strong base of support early.

Tune into the debate with me Wednesday night!