Kentucky gov. endorses Bunning challenger

Kentucky Gov. Steve Beshear (D) has formally endorsed his lieutenant governor, Daniel Mongiardo (D), in the race against Sen. Jim Bunning (R-Ky.).

The nod will make an already complicated primary situation Democrats face even more challenging, as Mongiardo is likely to face competition for the nomination. National Democrats hope Rep. Ben Chandler (D-Ky.) will enter the race, but this week that possibility became far more remote, according to Kentucky sources.

{mosads}It is far more likely that establishment Democrats in Washington will rally around Attorney General Jack Conway (D), who is close with Chandler and state Auditor Crit Luallen (D). The three were never likely to run against each other and have spent the past several months working out just who would seek Bunning’s seat.

After meeting earlier this week, Beshear came out publicly to back Mongiardo’s second campaign against the two-term Republican. In 2004, Bunning beat Mongiardo by just two points while President Bush carried Kentucky’s electoral votes easily.

“As a doctor, state senator and now, as lieutenant governor, Daniel has been a leader in the push for e-health technology, a priority he shares with President Barack Obama,” Beshear said in a statement endorsing Mongiardo. His efforts on several issues “mirror the priorities being articulated by the Obama administration at this defining hour for our country.”

National Democrats have been less than enthusiastic about Mongiardo’s candidacy, and Chandler told reporters last week he had been approached by the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee about running.

A recently commissioned poll the DSCC paid for shows Bunning extremely vulnerable, according to sources briefed on the results.

The Republican senator has intimated several times he is having trouble raising money for a bid. Bunning has blamed Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) for continuing to fundraise following McConnell’s own close battle for reelection in 2008.

Through the end of 2008, Bunning had just $150,000 in the bank, and Republicans have privately expressed nervousness about Bunning’s chances for reelection. Bunning has expressed increasing frustration with his precarious position, at times threatening to sue the National Republican Senatorial Committee and speculating about resigning his seat and allowing Beshear to appoint a Democratic replacement.