CARNAHAN COULD NAME NEW SECRETARY OF STATE THIS WEEK

JEFFERSON CITY -- Missouri Gov. Mel Carnahan could name a new secretary of state by the end of the week and will nominate someone no later than the end of the year, an aide said Wednesday.

"We would like to get it done as soon as possible," said Chris Sifford, communications director for the governor.

Sifford said the governor, who has the sole authority to name a replacement for ousted Secretary of State Judith Moriarty, has talked with several people interested in taking the job.

Dick Hanson, director of the Office of Administration, has been handling the duties on an interim basis since September, when the House of Representatives voted three articles of impeachment against Moriarty.

Hanson is not interested in having the job permanently.

Sifford said interest in the job has surfaced from potential candidates and their supporters since the Supreme Court unanimously found Moriarty guilty of all three articles on Monday.

He would not say how many people Carnahan was considering or who was under consideration.

He stressed that the governor is looking for someone who can restore public confidence to the office quickly, as well as someone who could be a strong Democratic candidate in 1996.

"We are looking for someone who is capable, bright, and someone who has demonstrated the ability to manage people. That may not be somebody who has managed a staff of 300, but someone who is capable of doing that," said Sifford.

"The office clearly cries out for someone who will be a hands-on secretary of state and take part in the daily operations of the office."

Moriarty was the first woman ever elected secretary of state and only the third woman elected to statewide office in Missouri.

Sifford said the governor believes state government should reflect the diversity of the state. "I think he would like to appoint a woman if possible, but it is not a foregone conclusion that it will happen."

State Rep. Gracia Backer, D-New Bloomfield, is considered on of the leading candidates for the appointment.

Backer was heavily favored last August when it seemed Moriarty might resign. But with the 1994 elections cutting the size of the Democratic majority in the House to a four-decade low, it is unlikely any state legislator would be given serious consideration for the job unless a Democrat was almost certain to be elected to replace the candidate.

Other possible female appointees include former State Rep. Katie Steele, now working for the federal transportation office in Kansas City; Rep. May Scheve, D-St. Louis; retiring Jackson County Executive Marsha Murphy; and Emily (Brennecke) Firebaugh, a Fredericktown businesswoman who was born and raised in Cape Girardeau.

Some of the other potential candidates include: Joe Driskill, director of the Department of Economic Development; Sen. Steve Danner, who lost the state auditor's race; U.S. Rep. Alan Wheat, who lost his bid for the U.S. Senate this year; and Howard Wagner, the Jefferson County circuit clerk who was a Democratic candidate for secretary of state in 1992.

Whoever is appointed will serve a term that expires in January 1997.