Tampa Tribune

U.S. Rep. Connie Mack IV made it official Monday night, announcing he would run for the Republican nomination for U.S. Senate.

"I am going to run for the United States Senate because, frankly, I think the people of Florida have had enough," he said, on Fox News' Sean Hannity show.

Mack called incumbent Sen. Bill Nelson one of President Barack Obama's "go-to" guys in the Senate for programs that he said just bring more government regulation and more taxes.

"Senator Nelson doesn't understand that the people in the state of Florida want somebody who believes in them – not somebody who believes in more government," Mack said. "The American people and the people in the state of Florida have said 'we've had it, enough is enough. We want to go in another direction.' "

Mack's entry into what has been a lackluster race to date to challenge Nelson will likely propel him into the frontrunner's position.

A poll conducted two weeks ago showed Mack starting the race with the support of nearly one-third of registered GOP voters. The poll, by Quinnipiac University, showed Mack at 32 percent, George LeMieux 9 percent, Mike McCalister 6 percent, Adam Hasner and Craig Miller 2 percent each – but a majority still said they were undecided or unwilling to pick one of those five.

Mack, son of popular U.S. Sen. Connie Mack III and grandson of baseball great Connie Mack Sr., may also be Nelson's biggest threat.

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