Second Valley resident running for Congress

A Johnson Lane resident who describes himself as an "extreme radical middle-of-the-road" Republican has become the second person from Carson Valley to run for Congress.

Glenn Thomas, 56, a retired aerospace engineer, filed for the seat being vacated by District 2 Rep. Jim Gibbons, R-Nev.

A recent arrival to Carson Valley, Thomas said he often disagreed with the congressman where he lived in Milpitas, Calif.

"I'd thought about running for Congress for many years," he said. "I figured that with a seat with no incumbent, it could be anybody's game."

Thomas said he spent four years looking for a place to retire before choosing Carson Valley.

"I decided that California is not such a great place to live," he said. "There were just a lot of things there that were not to my liking."

Thomas said he is not happy with the turn Congress has taken recently and that it is difficult to tell from the outside why the body takes the actions it does.

"Until recently, I haven't had time to take notice except whatever I read in the funny papers," he said. "Generally speaking, I could hardly do worse."

In describing his politics, he said that he is in some ways very conservative and in others more to the center.

"It depends on the topic and the situation," he said. "Just having a doctrine doesn't always work. Sometimes it does, and sometimes it doesn't apply. It's better to look at things and take them on their merit."

This will be the first time Thomas has run for public office. He is the affiliated club coordinator of the Nevada section of the American Radio Relay League. He also serves as the amateur radio emergency coordinator for Douglas County.

"I've held some offices in the amateur radio organization, but this is the first time for something of this scope," he said. "It should be fun and I'll get a chance to make my own mistakes."

University and Community College regent Jill Derby is the other Carson Valley resident and only Democrat seeking Gibbons congressional seat. A third Douglas County resident, Stateline's Daniel Rosen, is running as an Independent.

On the Republican side, Thomas will face some of the state's heavy hitters, including Secretary of State Dean Heller, Reno Assemblywoman Sharron Angle and Dawn Gibbons, a former assemblywoman and the wife of Northern Nevada congressman and gubernatorial candidate Jim Gibbons.