By Arun Kumar
Louisiana’s Indian-American Governor Bobby Jindal has taken another step towards a possible 2016 presidential run by forming an exploratory committee and launching a national website, www.bobbyjindal.com.
Though Jindal has said he still isn’t an official candidate yet, he is expected to formally enter the race after the Louisiana Legislature adjourns on June 11, according to local Times Picayune newspaper.
Forming an exploratory committee allows a potential presidential candidate to “test the waters” for a national campaign, raise money, take out-of-state trips or conduct polling for a potential presidential campaign.
“For some time now, my wife Supriya and I have been thinking and praying about whether to run for the presidency of our great nation,” Jindal said in a statement.
“If I run, my candidacy will be based on the idea that the American people are ready to try a dramatically different direction. Not a course correction, but a dramatically different path.”
Jindal has made frequent visits to key early voting states in recent months, testing a message centered on the need to “restore the American Dream,” which he says President Barack Obama’s “weak leadership” has diminished.
But despite his experience as governor and a compelling personal background as the American-born son of Indian immigrants, Jindal has struggled to make an impact in national polls of potential Republican candidates, the Washington Post noted.
“Jindal would likely face an uphill battle for the nomination if he decides to run with a Republican field already extremely crowded with six declared candidates and another half-dozen expected to announce in the coming month,” it said.
Former Florida governor Jeb Bush and Wisconsin Governor Scott Walker have already launched aggressive fundraising efforts, in part with the help of allied super PACs which can raise and spend unlimited sums of money to advocate for or against political candidates.
On the Democratic side besides former First Lady and Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, presidential exploratory committee have been formed among others by former senator Jim Webb and Senator Lincoln Chaffee, former Rhode Island Governor
Vermont Senator Bernie Sanders has also said he would be seeking Democratic nomination.