Martin Launches Senate Bid

By Jeremy P. Jacobs  //  January 31, 2011 | 9:45 a.m.
Updated: February 1, 2011 | 2:25 p.m.

Missouri Republican Ed Martin announced Monday that he will run for the Senate, joining what looks like it will be a crowded Republican primary to take on Democratic Sen. Claire McCaskill (D-MO) next year.

"Today I'm announcing that I'm running for the United States Senate in 2012," Martin said in a web video early Monday morning.

Martin's entry into the race has been expected for a couple weeks and adds a new dynamic to the Republican primary. Before Martin, only former Missouri Treasurer Sarah Steelman (R) had jumped into the race.

Steelman has sought to shore up support among influential Tea Party groups, including scheduling a meeting with Tea Party kingmaker Sen. Jim DeMint (R-SC) in Washington last December.

But there appears to be some reservations about Steelman in the conservative wing of the Missouri GOP, and that's exactly where Martin hopes to position himself. Martin founded a Tea Party group last year and capitalized on their support during his unsuccessful congressional bid against Rep. Russ Carnahan (D) last year.

Martin touched on those themes in his video Monday.

"I believe the 2012 election will come down to a very simple question," he said. "What should the size, scope and cost of the federal government be. Pres. Barack Obama and Sen. Claire McCaskill have answered this simple question. They've said the federal government should be bigger, it should be more powerful and it should be more costly."

Martin and Steelman may not have the Republican primary to themselves. Former Missouri GOP Chair and 2011 Republican National Committee chair candidate Ann Wagner has indicated that she is considering the race, as have Reps. Jo Ann Emerson and Sam Graves. Wagner and Emerson are said to be personally close so it is unlikely that they will both run. Martin is a former chief of staff to Missouri Gov. Matt Blunt and rallied Tea Party support in 2010 to make his race with Carnahan closer than many anticipated. But he will be challenged for Tea Party backing this year. Steelman, who was thought of as the "Tea Party candidate" when she was considering a Senate primary challenge to then Rep. Roy Blunt (R) last year, has worked on her conservative credentials and has been praised by the fiscally conservative Club for Growth. Both Steelman and Martin would count parts of southern Missouri as their base. Martin's is centered around the St. Louis, where he ran for Congress. Steelman's is to the west, focused around her home in Rolla and where she grew up, Jefferson City. This post was updated at 10:00 a.m.

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