Iowa Congressman Says He Won’t Run for Senate

Did the Republican Party’s quest to win control of the Senate just become more difficult

It is too early to draw a conclusion, given that the midterm elections are 21 months away. But the decision on Wednesday by Representative Tom Latham not to make a bid to fill the seat of Senator Tom Harkin of Iowa, who is retiring, disappointed many Republicans.

The Senate race in Iowa, for the state’s first open seat since 1974, has gained considerable attention as Republicans aim to pick up six seats to win a majority next year. The contest has become an early proxy for whether Republican leaders will be successful in their efforts to instill a greater sense of discipline into primary races.

Mr. Latham, a close ally of Speaker John A. Boehner, said in a letter to supporters on Wednesday that he did not want to run for the Senate so quickly after winning re-election.

“I cannot in good conscience launch a two-year statewide campaign that will detract from the commitment I made to the peple who elected me,” Mr. Latham wrote, “at a time when our nation desperately needs less campaigning and more leadership.”

Representative Steve King of Iowa, who has made a series of incendiary statements during his time in Washington, even while earning strong praise from his constituents, is considering a bid, and Republican officials believe he is inclined to run. The decision by Mr. Latham only increases the likelihood that Mr. King will enter the race, two of his close supporters said.

His potential candidacy could be the first test of the Conservative Victory Project, a group founded by Karl Rove and the “super PAC” American Crossroads to take an aggressive role in Republican primaries next year.

The project is being waged with last year’s Senate contests in mind, particularly the one in Missouri, where Representative Todd A! kin’s comment that “legitimate rape” rarely causes pregnancy complicated Republican campaigns across the country.

Steven J. Law, the president of American Crossroads, who is overseeing the Conservative Victory Project, cited Iowa as an example for why Republicans needed to intervene in primary fights.

“We’re concerned about Steve King’s Todd Akin problem,” Mr. Law said in an interview this month. “This is an example of candidate discipline and how it would play in a general election. All of the things he’s said are going to be hung around his neck.”

For his part, Mr. King said this month that he would not be bullied out of a Senate race. He asked his supporters to make contributions to his campaign account, saying, “Karl Rove and his army have launched a crusade against me.”

Chris Chocola, the president of the Club for Growth, a conservative group that hs taken an active role in Republican primaries, criticized the Conservative Victory Project on Wednesday. He said it was incorrect to assume that Mr. King could not run a viable candidacy and win the Senate seat.

“We don’t think King is like Akin,” Mr. Chocola said in an interview. “We don’t think he has an Akin problem.”

Still, the decision by Mr. Latham not to run for the Senate caused ripples from Iowa to Washington. Republican officials in both places said they were searching for other prospective candidates to enter the race.

Representative Bruce Braley is the only Democrat to enter the race. He has already locked up the support of several state Democratic leaders and is expected to avoid a contested primary campaign.