Trump campaign adviser Lara Trump and White House chief of staff Mark Meadows are both considering running for Senate in North Carolina after Sen. Richard Burr announced he would not seek reelection in 2022, Fox News has learned.
A person familiar with President Trump’s daughter-in-law’s plans, who has discussed them directly with her, told Fox News Friday that she is “interested and exploring” whether she will run.
2022 SENATE ELECTION FIGHT ALREADY UNDERWAY, WITH 2020 BATTLE STILL NOT OVER
The person said she should “automatically be considered formidable,” saying she has deep roots in the state and was a frequent presence for the Trump campaign there in 2016 and in 2020. Trump, who is married to Trump Organization executive vice president Eric Trump, was born in Wilmington, N.C.
“The president gave her the responsibility of winning North Carolina in 2016 and in 2020 — she did it both times,” the source said, calling her a “household name” and saying she is “well-known among the Republican Party.”
“Were she to run, she should be considered an immediate front runner,” the source said.
Meanwhile, a GOP source involved in Senate races told Fox News that Meadows is also mulling a Senate campaign in the state.
BURR STEPS ASIDE AS SENATE INTELLIGENCE COMMITTEE CHAIRMAN
Prior to joining the White House as chief of staff earlier this year, Meadows represented North Carolina’s 11th Congressional District since 2013.
Trump and Meadows.[contentad widget=”427100″]
Burr, who earlier this year stepped down as Senate Intelligence Committee chairman amid an investigation into his stock sales during the early stages of the coronavirus outbreak, announced he would retire from the Senate.
Sen. Pat Toomey, R-Pa., has also said he will not run for reelection.
“I’ve got to recruit somebody in Pennsylvania, and somebody in North Carolina, for Richard Burr and Pat Toomey, so that will be work. But if we do that, I think we have a good opportunity to not just defend but pick up,” incoming National Republican Senatorial Committee (NRSC) chair Sen. Rick Scott told Fox News.
Fox News’ Paul Steinhauser contributed to this report.