Gov. Bobby Jindal on Monday announced the formation of an exploratory committee that will allow him to raise money for a presidential campaign.
Once standard practice, the Louisiana Republican is among the few 2016 contenders to open an exploratory committee as part of the pre-White House campaign process. Most of the officially announced Republican 2016 candidates opened new political action committees in advance of their campaigns, as has Jindal, but skipped the exploratory committee phase.
“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. We’ll make a final decision in June, after the legislative session in Louisiana ends,” 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.”
Exploratory committees allow potential candidates to raise money for a campaign, according to Federal Election Commission-mandated limits, as a means to test the waters and gauge support. Jindal is expected to announce for president; his move to open an exploratory committee is viewed as a formality. Jindal discussed his agenda as president in an interview with the Washington Examiner.
