Ralph Reed has officially announced that he will not run for Congress, confirming earlier reports.
“After much thought and prayer, I have decided not to be a candidate for Congress in Georgia’s Seventh district in 2010. I believe I can best advance conservative principles by continuing to serve as CEO of Century Strategies, LLC, and founding chairman of the Faith and Freedom Coalition,” Reed said in a statement. Reed had been considering a run for the House seat of Rep. John Linder (R-GA), who is retiring this year.
Reed predicted that his political organization, the Faith and Freedom Coalition, will register a million faith-based voters and conduct “the largest conservative get-out-the-vote effort in modern political history” in 2010 and 2012. “I believe electing 50 to 100 men and women of character and conservative beliefs to Congress and statewide office over the next two election cycles is a more efficacious way to advance the conservative agenda than seeking public office myself in 2010,” he said.
Reed, a longtime power-broker in Christian Right politics, previously ran for lieutenant governor of Georgia in 2006. Although he started out in a very strong position, his campaign was derailed as the Jack Abramoff scandal widened, with e-mails showing his own business communications with the disgraced lobbyist. Reed lost the Republican primary to state Sen. Casey Cagle by a margin of 56%-44%.
