Trump Confidant Lewandowski May Challenge New Hampshire Senator 

(Bloomberg) -- Donald Trump’s former campaign manager, Corey Lewandowski, is considering challenging Democratic New Hampshire Senator Jeanne Shaheen in 2020, he said.

Shaheen, the first woman to serve as both a governor and U.S. senator, is regarded by Republicans as potentially vulnerable because of her competitive re-election in 2014. Lewandowski said he’s looking at the race “very seriously,” confirming reports that Trump’s allies were eyeing him as a Shaheen challenger.

Trump hasn’t yet indicated whether he would support a bid by Lewandowski, according to people familiar with the matter. They asked not to be identified because the discussions weren’t public.

Lewandowski has remained a confidant of the president despite being fired from his campaign prior to his election, and is a frequent visitor to the White House and aboard Air Force One. He flew with Trump to a campaign rally in Cincinnati on Thursday.

After the election, Lewandowski co-founded Avenue Strategies, a lobbying firm, which he left in 2017. He now runs his own consulting firm and advises for Turnberry Solutions, without registering as a lobbyist.

“Corey Lewandowski is a craven lobbyist who has been credibly accused of assault many times and is chomping at the bit to strip away Granite Staters’ health care,” Josh Marcus-Blank, a spokesman for the New Hampshire Democratic Party, said in a statement issued by Shaheen’s campaign. “Meanwhile, Senator Shaheen is making a difference for New Hampshire families, leading efforts in the Senate to expand access to health care and taking on the big drug companies to lower the costs of prescription drugs. The contrast couldn’t be more clear.”

Lewandowski has previously run for office -- one time in Massachusetts and another in New Hampshire -- but was unsuccessful.

Shaheen was elected to the Senate in 2008 after having served as New Hampshire’s governor from 1997 to 2003 and before that as a state senator.

Bill O’Brien, a former Republican New Hampshire House speaker, has already announced he will seek the Republican nod to challenge Shaheen, as has Retired Brigadier General Don Bolduc.

New Hampshire radio station WMUR reported earlier on Thursday that Lewandowski was being discussed as a potential challenger to Shaheen.

--With assistance from Daniel Flatley.

To contact the reporter on this story: Jennifer Jacobs in Washington at jjacobs68@bloomberg.net

To contact the editors responsible for this story: Alex Wayne at awayne3@bloomberg.net, Joshua Gallu

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