Former NFL player, 101st Airborne veteran, announces candidacy for Senate seat

LITTLE ROCK, Ark. (AP) – Former NFL player Jake Bequette announced Monday that he is challenging Arkansas Senator John Boozman in next year’s Republican primary.

Bequette, an army veteran and former Razorbacks player, kicked off his candidacy with an online video touting his football and military background. Bequette, 32, played three games with the New England Patriots in 2012 and five games the following season.

In 2015, Bequette joined the military and was made an infantry lieutenant, according to his campaign website. He was then deployed to Iraq with the 101st Airborne Division.

“What is happening in Washington these days is a shame. Democrats have been supported by radical socialists, and too many Republicans are just getting along, ”Bequette said in the ad as footage of House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer and New York Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez march past. the screen.

Boozman, who was first elected to seat in 2010 and re-elected in 2016, faces an overcrowded primary next year. Other challengers include Jan Morgan, owner of a Hot Springs shooting range who ran unsuccessfully against Gov. Asa Hutchinson in the 2018 GOP primary. Three Democrats are pushing for the party’s nomination to challenge Boozman in solid red state.

Boozman, also a former Razorback, won the endorsement of former President Donald Trump this year. He said in April that he had more than $ 1.1 million in the bank for his re-election bid. Boozman served in Congress representing Northwest Arkansas before being elected to the Senate.

Boozman also has the backing of other senior Republicans in the state, including fellow Arkansas senator Tom Cotton and former White House press secretary Sarah Sanders, who is running for governor.

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“John Boozman is a relentless and effective fighter for the Arkansans,” Boozman campaign spokesperson Toni-Marie Higgins said in an email. “John looks forward to sharing his strong, conservative record and continuing to serve the people of Arkansas.”

Bequette’s campaign site presents him as “a true conservative who will advance Trump’s conservative agenda.” Bequette does not mention Boozman by name in his announcement video, but in an interview he said he believes the outgoing senator has spent too much time in Washington.

“He’s been in Washington for over 20 years. He is entering his third decade in Washington, in the swamps, ”Bequette told The Associated Press. “I just think it’s time for a change, it’s time for someone new.”

Bequette said he supports the repeal of the Affordable Care Act. He also called for the completion of the construction of a wall along the United States’ border with Mexico which Trump advocated but has been suspended by the Biden administration.