Mark Green will not resume campaign for Tennessee governor

Tennessee state Sen. Mark Green (R) announced he would not be resuming his gubernatorial bid Friday.

“The very difficult task of electing a true conservative to be the fiftieth governor of Tennessee when the vote will clearly be split among several candidates harms that cause. For that reason, I will not be resuming my campaign for governor,” Green said in a statement.

A statement from Dr. Mark Green on his future plans: pic.twitter.com/YGRBnirLLb

— Mark E. Green MD (@DrMarkGreen4TN) June 2, 2017

{mosads}

The state senator says he hopes to offer his services to the Trump administration in Washington, D.C.

“Several options exist in the near future to do this and I will continue discussions with people around the state and Washington as I find the best path of service,” he said.

Green withdrew his nomination for Army secretary in May due to controversy over his past comments about LGBT and Muslim Americans. He told The Tennessee Star this week that he withdrew his name from consideration because a Democratic senator promised to use a procedural “blackball” to prevent Green’s nomination from moving to a vote. 

His decision to bow out of Tennessee’s gubernatorial race comes as speculation mounts that House Budget Committee Chairwoman Diane Black (R-Tenn.) is eyeing a run for the state’s governor’s mansion.