Facebook exec eyes run for California top justice post

April 30, 2009

The executive in charge of keeping Facebook safe said Wednesday he is eyeing a bid for the job of California's top law enforcement official in a 2010 election. Facebook chief privacy officer Chris Kelly made his announcement in a YouTube video embedded in freshly-launched campaign website kelly2010.com.

Kelly said he has launched a committee to explore his viability as a contender for the elected post of state attorney general.

"Improving Internet safety for young people and providing people of all ages with safer online experiences will be a critical goal for me as your attorney general," Kelly said in a video talk lasting nearly four minutes.

He also promised to make sure police have updated technology to deter and solve crimes and thwart trafficking of guns, drugs and humans across the US-Mexico border.

Kelly said that as chief privacy officer at Facebook for the past four years he has worked closely with attorneys general throughout the nation to protect children from sex predators online and to safeguard people's privacy.

"Over the past year, many people I respect have asked me to run for California attorney general in 2010," Kelly said of his decision.

"This committee will help me determine how I can best continue my contributions to a safer, more secure and more transparent California."

Kelly said he is a law school graduate who has clerked for a federal judge in Southern California.

He offered as political credentials work he did with former US president Bill Clinton's 1992 campaign and in early days of Clinton's term in office.

"My time with the Clinton administration left me with an abiding respect for public service and a desire to contribute further myself," Kelly said.

If Kelly sticks with the attorney general political race, he will be vying for a position currently held by Jerry Brown, who is expected to run for governor of California when Arnold Schwarzenegger's term ends in 2010.

(c) 2009 AFP