Tea Party challenger for Mitch McConnell

Pundits have been calling the race for Mitch McConnell's seat in Kentucky a slam dunk for the incumbent.

But that was against the likely Democratic challenger, Kentucky Secretary of State Alison Lundergan Grimes. What a about a primary challenge from a Tea Party activist with a personal fortune large enough to self finance a serious run?

The Hill:

Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) will have a challenger from the right in Matt Bevin, a local businessman and Tea Party candidate who plans to announce his run for Senate this week.

Bevin, who has been exploring the race since February, is reportedly already buying airtime and has met with multiple conservative groups about his run. He'll launch a 3-day, 8-stop tour of the state after he formally announces his intentions on Wednesday.

Bevin is a partner at a Kentucky investment firm and the owner of Bevin Brothers Manufacturing, a Connecticut bell-making company founded 160 years ago. He previously worked as CEO of Integrity Asset Management, an investment management firm with offices in Kentucky.


His personal wealth would be an advantage running against McConnell, who has nearly $10 million cash on hand for the race.

McConnell has long been considered vulnerable to a primary challenge, but no candidate had previously emerged.

He's worked, in recent years, to shore up support on his right flank and hired Jesse Benton, the former campaign manager for Sen. Rand Paul (R-Ky.) with ties to the Tea Party in Kentucky, to his team.

A large number of Kentucky Republicans have been looking to unseat the minority leader. But is Bevin the guy to do it?

He has money, but no political experience. He'd have to spend millions building name recognition and has less than a year to do it. And he'd have to build an organization from scratch. McConnell has the advantages of incumbency and the entire Republican establishment behind him nationwide. The odds for Bevin would appear to be long.

If Kentucky Republicans are desperate to get rid of McConnell - so desperate they take the attitude that anyone is better - then Bevin has a shot. But unless McConnell becomes embroiled in some personal scandal, he will probably have enough support to prevail in the primary.



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