Tagg Romney to skip Mass. Senate race

Catalina Camia, USA TODAY 5:51p.m. EST February 4, 2013


Tagg Romney was an adviser to his father's 2012 presidential campaign.(Photo: Charles Dharapak, AP)

Story Highlights

  • The eldest son of the 2012 GOP presidential nominee says the timing isn't right
  • Voters go to the polls June 25 to pick a replacement for John Kerry, who is now secretary of State
  • Scott Brown and other high-profile Republicans are skipping the race


Tagg Romney, the eldest son of GOP presidential hopeful Mitt Romney, said Monday he will not seek the U.S. Senate seat vacated by John Kerry.

"The timing is not right for me," said Romney, 42, in a statement.

Romney's decision highlights the difficulty Republicans are having in recruiting a candidate for the June 25 special election. Kerry was sworn in Friday as secretary of State, and former senator Scott Brown and other high-profile Republicans have opted not to run.

MORE:
Ex-governor William Weld opts out of Senate race

The younger Romney was the subject of speculation Monday when The Boston Herald reported he was considering the race. ABC News was among the news outlets that said earlier in the day that Romney would not run, citing unnamed sources close to him.

Democratic Reps. Ed Markey and Stephen Lynch have already begun their Senate campaigns. While Massachusetts is solidly blue in presidential elections, it has voted for Republicans as governor — including Mitt Romney in 2006.

While Romney is a well-known name in Massachusetts, there are several factors that made his candidacy unlikely.

For one, Mitt Romney lost Massachusetts to President Obama in November by about 23 percentage points. The younger Romney, who was an adviser to his father's presidential campaign, is focused on Solamere Capital, the venture capital firm he launched after Mitt Romney's 2008 White House bid.

Tagg Romney is also the father of six children, including twins who were born to a surrogate last year.
http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/politics/2013/02/04/tagg-romney-senate-massachusetts-john-kerry/1891525/