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Former state Rep. Charles Booker announced Monday that he is launching an exploratory committee for the 2022 U.S. Senate race.
“Kentuckians deserve a senator who will fight as hard for us as we fight for each other, and that’s why I’m formally announcing an exploratory committee for U.S. Senate,” Booker said in a press release. “We can, we will, and we must build a future that works for all of us instead of just for a wealthy few.”
An exploratory committee is a step shy of officially announcing his candidacy. Also known as “testing the waters,” it allows Booker to poll, travel the state, make phone calls and, most importantly, fundraise without officially declaring himself as a candidate.
Booker, who ran in the Democratic primary for U.S. Senate and came three percentage points shy after surging late in the race, has long indicated that he had his eyes on the U.S. Senate race. In an interview on KET last month, he told host Renee Shaw that he was “seriously considering” the race.
Booker is considered a frontrunner in a Democratic primary to face incumbent U.S. Senator Rand Paul in a general election.
Paul’s campaign did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
In the last few months of his 2020 campaign, Booker gained national prominence as he gained momentum against the Democratic frontrunner Amy McGrath after protests over racial inequality thrust him into the spotlight. While he fell short of beating McGrath, he emerged with a strong base of support and a national profile.
Still, Booker will face the challenge of keeping his momentum in a state where many question whether a Democrat can win statewide. A Democrat has not won a U.S. Senate seat in Kentucky this century and Paul won his last election by nearly 15 percentage points.
Will Charles Booker be Amy McGrath all over again in Kentucky’s 2022 Senate race?
This article will be updated.
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