GOP Sen. John Kennedy considers bid for Louisiana governor This year, Louisiana Democrats are counting on a top lawmaker whose legacy will shine brightly if he runs for governor: Republican Senator John Kennedy, known for his blunt approach to politics. His candidacy, however, runs the risk of turning him into a political player to the left of the party’s leadership.
Republican John Kennedy is considering a run for governor of Louisiana, a state that, like so many in the South, is at a crossroads: It’s seen as a bellwether of how the rest of the country might decide to fare under Donald Trump.
On one side: a GOP president with a base of loyal supporters who feel like he is fighting for them.
On the other: an opposition candidate who is the polar opposite of Trump, whose populism and nationalist leanings are now being seen in Trump Country.
Now, as Trump prepares to hold his first presidential debate with Hillary Clinton, Kennedy is weighing it all and is hoping to land as an actual Republican with the party who is running Trump.
“I’m definitely thinking about it,” Kennedy told CNNMoney in an interview on Monday. “I’ve looked over my shoulder, you know, because I’ve got a wife and a little daughter and you don’t know what’s going to happen. But that’s only natural considering that [I’m] Republican.”
Here’s what you need to know about Kennedy’s bid for governor and the potential challenges he still faces.
It’s complicated
Democrats are counting on the Kennedy candidacy to become a bellwether of how the rest of the country — particularly those on the ideological left — might be swayed by Trump, who campaigned on a populist, nationalist message that appeals to the working class and people in the inner cities.
But his candidacy is complicated by the fact that he also considers himself a Republican. And for this state, that means a party whose presidential nominee Trump recently won by a margin of more than 2.9 million votes, and who will spend the next two years campaigning nationally and in support of the party’s nominee — even