AUGUSTA, Ga. (AP) - A former federal prosecutor appointed by President Barack Obama formally launched his campaign Thursday in the crowded race to take on Georgia's newest U.S. senator.
Democrat Ed Tarver, 60, of Augusta is the third Democrat to officially announce he's challenging newly appointed Republican Sen. Kelly Loeffler, who also has a GOP opponent in U.S. Rep. Doug Collins. All candidates will share the ballot in a free-for-all special election Nov. 3.
Tarver kicked off his Senate bid with an online video that emphasized his military service as an Army captain and featured photos of the candidate with Obama, who chose Tarver to become southern Georgia's first African-American U.S. attorney. He pledged to work toward bipartisan solutions to improve access to health care and battle climate change.
"In the Army, we were never asked if we were conservatives or liberals," Tarver said in a news release. "It was about serving one nation."
Tarver said more than a month ago that he planned to join the race for the Senate seat that Loeffler was appointed to fill after Republican Johnny Isakson retired at the end of December. Tarver didn't back down after the race quickly became crowded.
Other Democrats running are the Rev. Raphael Warnock, pastor of the Ebenezer Baptist Church in Atlanta where Martin Luther King Jr. preached, and Matt Lieberman, an educator whose father is former senator and vice presidential candidate Joe Lieberman.