Boustany Takes Himself Out of Senate Race Pool
Rep. Charles Boustany (R) will not challenge Sen. Mary Landrieu (D) next year, leaving Rep. Richard Baker as the only GOP House Member who has not ruled out the race.
Despite encouragement from the National Republican Senatorial Committee and others, however, Baker does not seem overly eager and has been very obtuse about his interest.
He reportedly said he did not want to consider running at this time but did not completely close the door, The Town Talk of Alexandria reported Wednesday.
In January — the last time Baker spokesman Michael DiResto responded to Roll Call inquiries about a Senate race — he said Baker is “grateful and encouraged that there are those who would support such an effort, but at this point he hasn’t yet had a chance to devote a lot of thought to the opportunity.”
Rep. Jim McCrery (R) told Roll Call in January that he preferred to run for re-election to the House.
Rep. Bobby Jindal (R) is running for governor this year, though if he loses he could switch gears and try for the Senate.
Louisiana Secretary of State Jay Dardenne’s name continues to circulate as a possible GOP Senate candidate, especially after the release of a poll earlier this week showing Landrieu leading him 53 percent to 38 percent in a hypothetical contest.
NRSC Chairman John Ensign (Nev.) has named Landrieu as a top target this cycle.
— Nicole Duran