Updated February 29, 2:50 p.m. ET
Former Sen. Bob Kerrey has officially announced that he is running again for Senate.
Kerrey has also posted a campaign site, Kerrey2012.com, that is currently at its most bare-bones with a photo of the candidate when he was a Navy SEAL in the Vietnam War, a link to a contribution page for his campaign committee, and a short statement from the candidate: “Our future requires a commitment to fiscal discipline and restoring America as the land of opportunity. Party-first, me-first, and politics-first created the mess. A commitment to country first will get us out. I hope you will join me on this mission.”
Kerrey announced three weeks ago that he would not run for the seat he left in 2000, in the now open race to succeed fellow Democrat Ben Nelson. But earlier this week, Kerrey began to reconsider.
On Wednesday, he released this statement:
Doing things the conventional way has never been my strong suit. This afternoon, I will file to become a candidate for the United States Senate in Nebraska. I came to realize that my previous decision was the easy one, not the right one. My commitment to serve Nebraska and America, and to be part of the debate about the challenges we face was too strong to dismiss. My family supports this decision 100%. I look forward to seeing you in the coming weeks. We have a lot of work to do.
Kerrey also took another step on Tuesday: Registering to vote in the state once again, at the home of his sister in Omaha, after having lived for the past 11 years in New York City as head of the New School.
A similar move back to a state by a former Senator was accomplished in 2010, by former Sen. Dan Coats (R-IN), who moved back to Indiana and successfully returned to the Senate seat he had left behind in 1998. (Coats was previously a registered voter in Virginia.) Can Kerrey accomplish the same feat as a Democrat, in a state that is even more Republican-leaning?
It should also be noted that Kerrey is doing this in the nick of time for the Thursday filing deadline — but also possibly causing some bad blood with other Democrats who were subject to an earlier deadline.
Under Nebraska election law, there is actually a two-tiered system for filing deadlines. For those who currently hold any public office, the filing deadline was February 15. For non-officeholders, the deadline is March 1, this Thursday.
The current Democratic candidate Chuck Hassebrook — who because of the earlier deadline had to pull out of the race for his University of Nebraska Board of Regents seat, which is an elected position in this state — has been none too happy with the prospect of Kerry now jumping in. (Hassebrook launched his candidacy only after Kerrey’s previous announcement.) On Tuesday, he posted a YouTube video insisting that he was staying in the race.
