Mark Darr For U.S. Senate?

The National Journal today has a story claiming that Arkansas”s Lieutenant Governor Mark Darr plans to challenge U.S. Senator Mark Pryor in 2014.

From today”s National Journal:

“Arkansas lieutenant governor Mark Darr is planning to jump in the state”s Senate race against Democratic Sen. Mark Pryor, according to a GOP source familiar with his plans, giving the Republicans their first challenger against one of the party”s top 2014 targets.

Darr intends to officially enter the race in April, after the state legislative session ends. He was elected lieutenant governor in 2010, prevailing by a narrow two-point margin. That race was his first foray into politics; Darr owned a chain of restaurants before running for office. He”s from northwest Arkansas, the biggest Republican stronghold in the state”

The Journal article notes that the buzz for the GOP nomination has surrounded freshman Congressman Tom Cotton and not Darr.  Darr, however, is from Northwest Arkansas which is where a vast majority of votes come from in a Republican primary.  That factor could keep Cotton from receiving the nomination if he were to run.

Cotton is extremely popular with various national right-wing groups and leaders, but Darr already has one statewide run under his belt and seems to have done a good job of traveling the state and building a network.  Could we have a situation where a nationally popular politician is defeated in a primary with a locally popular politician?

Cotton has been all over FOX News, CNN, ABC, but Darr has been all over Benton, Washington and Sebastian Counties.  In a Republican primary, it may turn out that Darr”s work in those counties may trump Cotton”s work with the D.C. media.

And if Darr and Cotton do face off in a U.S. Senate primary, it impacts the political landscape of Arkansas.

First, and most obviously, it opens up two key offices that both parties will fight to win.  Second, if there is truly a competitive Republican statewide primary, it could change the make-up of the Democratic primary.  For decades Republicans have voted in the Democratic primary because there was often nothing to vote for in a GOP primary.  The exodus of Republicans from the Democratic primary changes the demographics of a Democratic primary and changes how Democratic candidates run their races.

In the end, however, I gotta believe the national Republic Party puts the screws to Darr to keep him from running against Cotton and that Darr never files for the office.