March 28, 2024

A PRESIDENTIAL hopeful looking to turn the White House into a bachelor pad has announced his candidacy.

Tim Scott, a Republican US senator representing South Carolina, debuted his primary campaign on Monday.

His candidacy is considered a long shot by many given the popularity of former President Donald Trump, but Scott winning the White House would be historic.

At 57, the politician is still unmarried.

If Scott is victorious, he would be the first president to not bring a spouse to the White House since 1884, when Grover Cleveland was inaugurated.

The only other president to lead the country without a first lady was James Buchanan, who was the only commander in chief who never got married. He took office in 1857.

“There’s always time for a great relationship with a wonderful woman,” Scott told NBC News on Monday when asked about his love life.

“I’ll leave it there.”

When Scott first ran for office nearly two decades ago, he campaigned as a proud 30-year-old virgin with a deep loyalty to his Evangelical faith, the Daily Mail reported.

But by the time Scott was 46, he was having more trouble abstaining.

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“Yeah… Not as well as I did then,” the Republican said at the time.

“The Bible’s right. You’re better off to wait,” he told the National Journal.

“I just wish we all had more patience.”

Scott has put off marriage and having children to prioritize caring for his mother, who used to work 16-hour days as a nurse to keep food on the table when he was a kid.

“As a poor kid growing up, the most important thing for me to do was take care of my mom,” Scott told Politico in 2018.

“And until I had that accomplished, starting a new family was just not an option for me.”

Scott being unmarried may not come to the fore unless his campaign is successful, conservative commentator Matt Lewis told the Daily Mail.

“I don’t think it matters at all,” he said.

“However, if Tim Scott were to start gaining momentum, and if he started to pose a threat to Donald Trump, it is the kind of thing that Trump would invoke. And then it might matter.”

Scott’s bachelor status isn’t the only thing that’s notable about his political career.

He’s already become the first Black person to serve in both chambers of Congress, Politico reported.

Scott is currently the only Black Republican in the US Senate and one of just three African Americans in the body.