Skip to content
RollCall logo

Meek Makes Senate Bid Official

By John McArdle
Posted January 13, 2009 at 9:34am

As expected, Rep. Kendrick Meek (D-Fla.) announced at a news conference Tuesday morning in Miami that he will seek the Senate seat of retiring Sen. Mel Martinez (R-Fla.) in 2010.

“Never in my lifetime have the people of Florida been faced with so many big problems,” Meek said in a press conference this morning. “Our state needs bold leadership at every level, and that … is why I’ve made the decision to run as a candidate for the United States Senate.”

While Meek is the first to officially announce, many Democratic insiders are waiting to see whether popular Florida Chief Financial Officer Alex Sink (D) will get into the race.

Meek, a member of the Congressional Black Caucus, is serving his fourth term in the House. First elected in 2002, he succeeded his mother, former Rep. Carrie Meek (D). If he wins, he would be the first African-American elected to statewide office in the Sunshine State.

Other potential Democratic candidates include Reps. Allen Boyd and Ron Klein. Potential Republican contenders include Reps. Vern Buchanan, Mario Diaz-Balart and Connie Mack IV, former state Speakers Allan Bense and Marco Rubio, and state Attorney General Bill McCollum.

Recent Stories

Women’s March holds a die-in outside the U.S. Supreme Court before oral arguments in Moyle v. United States on Wednesday. The case challenges a federal law that requires hospitals to perform an emergency abortion when needed to resolve a patient’s medical emergency.

Case highlights debate over ‘life of the mother’ exception

Health care workers hold signs outside the Supreme Court on Wednesday before oral arguments over a federal law that requires hospitals to perform an emergency abortion when needed to resolve a patient’s medical emergency.

Supreme Court split on Idaho abortion ban in emergency rooms

Rep. Donald M. Payne Jr., D-N.J., stands near a picture of himself and his late father, former Rep. Donald M. Payne, in his Cannon House Office Building office in 2016.

Donald Payne Jr., who filled father’s seat in the House, dies at 65

President Joe Biden speaks after signing the foreign aid bill at the White House.

Biden signs foreign aid bill, says weapons to be sent to allies within hours

Luggage sits at baggage claim at BWI Thurgood Marshall Airport in Glen Burnie, Md., on Dec. 28, 2022 after Southwest Airlines cancelled thousands of flights.

Airlines must report fees, issue prompt refunds, new rules say

Capitol Ink | B Movie