Scarborough: '18 Senate run possible

By Ben Kamisar - 04-03-15 15:41 PM EDT

Former Rep. and MSNBC “Morning Joe” host Joe Scarborough teased a potential bid for the Senate in 2018 during an interview with conservative radio host Hugh Hewitt.

“I want to get back into service, public service, and hopefully I can do it while a Republican’s at the White House,” he said.

While Scarborough ruled out a bid to replace Sen. Marco Rubio (R-Fla.) if he decides to vacate his seat and run for president, he floated the possibility of running for Sen. Bill Nelson’s (D-Fla.) seat in two years.

“In ’18, Bill Nelson’s up, and I don’t think Bill Nelson will be sticking around, so you know, one of these years, I think, one of these years, if I did something, I’d probably look to run in Florida,” he said, stressing that it’s only a possibility.

Scarborough served three full terms in Congress before resigning in 2001 to spend more time with his family. He’s since hosted shows on MSNBC and is currently the co-host of “Morning Joe” on MSNBC.

Because of his political past, he’s at times been rumored as a potential candidate. Public Policy Polling has included him on polls for Florida Senate races. In 2011, PPP’s polling found that Scarborough had a 65 percent approval rating. The poll also found that Scarborough trailed Nelson by 13 percentage points. That margin was, at that time, the best of any Republican candidate tested.

Scarborough also ruled out a White House bid in 2016 in the interview with Hewitt.