'We are about four seats short of controlling the state House,' he says. | M.Scott Mahaskey/POLITICO Paul eyes election fix to 2016 problem

Rand Paul has a solution for his political and legal dilemma facing his prospective 2016 campaign: Elect new members to the Kentucky state House.

Paul, the Kentucky tea party freshman, said in an interview that he would actively campaign for Kentucky House candidates who will back a bill making it easier for him to run for president and the Senate simultaneously in 2016. If the Democratic-led state House blocks the bill this year, he warned, it would given him even more reason to put his political muscle behind GOP candidates in November.


“We are about four seats short of controlling the state House,” Paul said Thursday in the Capitol. “It does provide some incentive for me to try to help people to win the state House.”

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As he gears up for a likely presidential run in 2016, Paul has found himself in a legal dilemma back home since he’ll also be up for Senate reelection that same year. The law states that “no candidate’s name shall appear on any voting machine or absentee ballot more than once” except in certain special election situations.

Such legislation to permit Paul to run for both offices at the same time — proposed by state GOP Sen. Damon Thayer — cleared a state committee this week and is expected to be approved soon by the Republican-led Senate. Then, it could stall in the state House or face a prospective veto from Democratic Gov. Steve Beshear. A simple majority would be needed to override any veto.

Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) has been actively lobbying state senators to back the legislation, sources say.

In Florida, Sen. Marco Rubio finds himself in a similar dilemma — but Kentucky’s laws appear more restrictive.

If no legislation passes to modify the state law, Paul could be forced to decide whether to mount a presidential bid for his party’s nomination or try to hang on to his Senate seat. Since the state’s filing deadlines aren’t until the final week of January 2016, he could also try to engage in some legal jujitsu. He could wait until the filing deadline to see if his potential presidential campaign catches fire before deciding which office to seek. Or Paul could just file as a Senate candidate in Kentucky while running for president nationally — meaning his name would appear only on his home state’s ballot in the Senate race.

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Still, those moves are fraught with risk and could expose Paul to litigation alleging he is running afoul of the state’s resign-to-run statute, given that this is an untested area of election law. In the interview, Paul said that even if the law isn’t changed, it shouldn’t prohibit him from running for both offices.

“We also believe that whether the law is changed or not that state law cannot set limitation on federal eligibility for office,” Paul said, arguing that case law is generally on his side. “The question is if in some states you can run for office and the presidency at the same time, how could you not do it in others — whether or not that’s an equality problem in the law.”

Indeed, every state has different laws over the matter. Delaware and Wisconsin allowed Joe Biden and Paul Ryan, respectively, to run for vice president and their congressional seats simultaneously in 2008 and 2012 elections. But given the uncertainty in Kentucky, Paul seems to be ready for a court fight.

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“There might be people who will [fight this in court],” he said. “We’ll see.”

But Paul clearly hopes to avoid a legal fight by prevailing in the Legislature. The current breakdown of the state House is 54 Democrats to 46 Republicans.

Kerri Richardson, a spokesperson for the governor, said it’s too early for the governor to state his position on the Senate bill.

“There are hundreds of bills in various stages of the legislative process at this time, including SB205,” Richardson said, referring to the bill number. “It’s still early in the legislative process, and the governor will take a look at the bill if it progresses through both houses.”

Greg Stumbo, the state House speaker, is “not in favor” of the Senate bill, according to his spokesman, Brian Wilkerson.

“Those who can’t decide which office to run for probably aren’t fit for either one,” Wilkerson said, quoting Stumbo’s previous remarks.

But Paul said Democratic roadblocks should prompt a reaction at the polls this November.

“It sounds like it would be an incentive to have a Republican state House,” he said. “We will have an election coming up in 2014; we will see what happens in those elections.”