Louisiana Republican Rep. Charles Boustany said Monday he will run for the Senate seat that Sen. David Vitter plans to vacate at the end of his current term.
Boustany said he will formally launch his campaign in Lafayette in the coming weeks.
“Louisiana deserves a United States Senator who can lead in times of challenge, offer conservative, workable solutions to complex problems, and bring unity in times of division,” Boustany said in a statement Monday.
Vitter, a Republican, announced his plans to retire after losing the governor’s race to Democrat John Bel Edwards in a runoff on Saturday. His third term will end in January 2017.
Boustany, from Lafayette, had hinted earlier that he would run for the Senate but said he was waiting for the results of the governor’s race. He and Republican Rep. John Fleming, who also plans to run for the Senate seat, endorsed Vitter in the governor’s race and both were at Vitter’s election night party Saturday.
Other Republicans expected to consider a run include retired Air Force Col. Rob Maness and state Treasurer John Kennedy. They also endorsed Vitter. Scott Angelle, who ran against Vitter and finished third in the gubernatorial primary, also is considering a bid.
Democrat Mitch Landrieu, mayor of New Orleans, also has been mentioned as a potential candidate.
Boustany, dean of the Louisiana delegation, has been laying the groundwork for a bid for months.
Earlier this year, he hired Justin Brasell as a general consultant. Brasell, who owns Triumph Campaign based in Jackson, Miss., helped Republican Tom Cotton of Arkansas win election to the Senate in 2014 and helped Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell of Kentucky win re-election in 2008.
Boustany, raised $610,744 in the third quarter, outpacing Fleming’s $373,041, according to recent reports filed with the Federal Election Commission. Fleming ended the quarter with $2.3 million, while Boustany had $1.45 million.
Fleming, who loaned his campaign $525,000, said he also loaned himself almost $1 million when he ran for the House in 2008.
“It’s a little harder (for me) to raise money as it is for maybe some other members,” he earlier this year. “I have to try harder to raise money because I’m hopefully listening to my districts and to my constituents. They don’t benefit from crony capitalism. They’re hurt by crony capitalism.”
Fleming, a favorite of the Tea Party movement who is serving his fourth term, has been working his way across the state meeting with groups and soliciting support.
Maness, a tea party favorite who ran unsuccessfully for the Senate last year, said he would campaign as an outsider. He said earlier this year he is working with national and state fundraisers and has interviewed a possible campaign manager.
“I think I’m going to be their strongest opponent,” he said of Fleming and Boustany.
Maness said Monday he will announce his plans soon, “but I strongly believe that Louisiana needs a strong conservative fighter in the U.S. Senate.”
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