Rep. Steve King (R-Iowa) will hit the road for former Rep. Pete Hoekstra’s (R-Mich.) Senate campaign, makings stops today at a trio of Michigan tea party events.

King is one of several GOP House Members who has endorsed Hoekstra’s primary bid to get the nod to challenge Sen. Debbie Stabenow (D). King is now joining Hoekstra on the campaign trail in Kalamazoo, Lansing and Farmington Hills.

Recent polling shows Republicans have an opening to defeat Stabenow in 2012, but it will be a tough task. And Hoekstra first must win the GOP nomination over charter schools executive Clark Durant (R).

Both Republican Senate candidates had strong fundraising this past quarter, but Hoekstra is better known in the state and has the support of many of his Congressional colleagues.

“Pete knows what he believes, is a social and fiscal Constitutional conservative, a foreign policy, border and national security expert, and he inspires others to follow his lead,” King said in a statement provided to Roll Call by Hoekstra’s campaign.

Hoekstra’s campaign says he is a co-founder of the House Tea Party Caucus that Rep. Michele Bachmann (R-Minn.) began in summer 2010.