Former NFL quarterback Peyton Manning said on Wednesday that he has no intention of running for political office after speculation erupted a day earlier that he might campaign for retiring Tennessee Sen. Bob Corker’s seat in the 2018 elections.
“I certainly have an interest in politics and in our country. I just have zero interest in being a politician,” Manning reportedly said on WGFX, a local radio station in Nashville.
Corker, R-Tenn., announced Tuesday that he would not seek re-election in 2018 and that that news drove politicos to venture guesses as to who might compete for his seat. Manning was among those mentioned.
A Tennessee Republican source told the Washington Examiner on Tuesday that Manning was one of three names that came to mind as potential GOP candidates to compete for Corker’s seat, along with Rep. Marsha Blackburn and Gov. Bill Haslam.
Meanwhile, Rep. Scott DesJarlais, R-Tenn., also floated Manning as a possibility, but for 2020 if Sen. Lamar Alexander decides against seeking re-election.
Reporters caught up with Corker and asked what they thought about Manning running for the Senate.
“Is it possible? I think it’s possible. Is it likely? I don’t know,” Corker said in a short exchange with reporters shown on MSNBC on Wednesday.
Corker cautioned that a “huge rush of public inquiries” might scare Manning away from a run for office “because I think he’s enjoying the private sector life that he’s leading right now.”
Manning played football for the University of Tennessee before moving on to the NFL where, over an 18-season career with the Indianapolis Colts and Denver Broncos, he won two Super Bowls.
