Senator David Vitter, a Republican once tarred by scandal, announced on Tuesday that he will run for governor of Louisiana.
The governorship will not be open until 2015; term limits prevent Gov. Bobby Jindal from seeking re-election. But Mr. Vitter announced his candidacy and unveiled his website early, adding his voice to a chorus of Washington lawmakers who have decided that a gridlocked Congress has lost its appeal.
“I believe that as our next governor, I can have a bigger impact addressing the unique challenges and opportunities we face in Louisiana,†he said in a taped announcement.
In 2007, Mr. Vitter was embroiled in a prostitution scandal when his phone number emerged in a case against Washington’s “D.C. Madam.†The conservative senator admitted to a “serious sin,†but weathered the scandal. Recently, Senator Harry Reid of Nevada, the majority leader, has been forced to bottle up a variety of bills rather than give Mr. Vitter a vote on an amendment he has pressed doggedly, which would strip members of Congress and their staff of any employer subsidies to purchase health insurance on the Affordable Care Act’s online marketplaces.
The confrontations over the bill have cemented Mr. Vitter’s status as conservative gadfly and angered even some members of his own party. They have also helped grind the Senate to a halt, a development Mr. Vitter appeared to decry in his decision to run for governor. He does not have to give up his Senate seat to run, and he made it clear that the decision, in effect starting a two-year campaign, would “in no way limit the critical work†he is doing in the Senate.
“After listening and learning, I will lead,†Mr. Vitter pledged.
The wide-open contest has already attracted many candidates. It could be a welcome distraction for Senator Mary L. Landrieu, Democrat of Louisiana, who faces a tough re-election race this year, as a Republican battle over the governorship could draw money and attention away from the party’s quest to unseat her.
