WASHINGTON, D.C. — After comfortably winning re-election last year for a fifth term in Congress, Lexington Republican Andy Barr could have higher political aspirations. As first reported in Kentucky Fried Politics, the domains "andybarrforsenate.com" and "barrforsenate.com" were both registered in late April.
"Many members of the House think about potentially running for the Senate at a certain point. But that doesn't necessarily mean that a campaign is imminent," said University of Virginia Center for Politics elections analyst Kyle Kondik.
Kondik said he doesn't see Barr trying to challenge Kentucky's junior Senator Rand Paul in next year's Republican primary. He only imagines Barr will enter the race if Paul changes his mind and decides not to run for re-election or if Kentucky's senior Senator Mitch McConnell retires.
In a statement, Barr spokesperson Alex Bellizzi said the Lexington congressman is focused on the job at hand, but didn't rule out a run in the future.
"Should the opportunity arise to further serve his community, state and country, he stands ready to do so," the statement read. "Congressman Barr is a proven leader who gets results, and is a battle tested winner who would be formidable in any statewide race.”
"There also could be a world in which someone like Andy Barr decides to run for Senate sometime in the future, maybe in 2026, if McConnell were to retire," Kondik remarked.
Barr is known on Capitol Hill for his fierce defense of capitalism in the Financial Services Committee. He suffered a personal tragedy when his wife Carol Barr died last year from a heart condition at age 39. In recent years, his congressional district has been the most competitive seat in Kentucky.
"If Barr were to seek higher office, this cycle or in the future, I think you'd probably still expect Republicans to hang on to a district like the sixth district. But it could potentially be competitive," Kondik said.
It’s not clear from Internet records who actually registered the domain names. Barr’s team would not confirm or deny if they were involved. It could have been a speculator who registered the domains believing they could be sold at profit down the road. Whatever the case, there is now a political buzz around Barr that did not exist just a few short weeks ago.