WASHINGTON, March 1 (UPI) -- Former U.S. Rep. Tom Coburn said Monday he will seek the Senate seat of retiring Sen. Don Nickles, R-Okla., giving GOP hopes of retaining the seat a boost.
Coburn, a favorite of party conservatives, informed supporters via an the DraftCoburnforSenate Web site he would be a candidate in Oklahoma's July 27 GOP primary.
"My decision to run for the Senate has been a very difficult one," he said. "I have resolved to follow my convictions and seek to become Oklahoma's next U.S. senator."
Other candidates for the Republican nomination are former Oklahoma City Mayor Kirk Humphreys and state Corporation Commissioner Bob Anthony.
First elected to the U.S. House in 1994, Coburn represented an overwhelmingly Democrat district around Tulsa, Okla., for three terms before stepping down, keeping a pledge to serve no more than six years.
Coburn will make a formal announcement later in the week.
