Sources close to Minnesota Rep. Michele Bachmann tell The Daily Caller that the Tea Party leader is poised to make an announcement at the end of May on a potential presidential candidacy.
TheDC reported last week that a number of Iowa politicos hoped, if not expected, Bachmann would make an announcement at a fundraiser she will be headlining in Des Moines, Iowa on May 26.
“My sense is she’s going to run,” Dave Funk, co-chair of the Polk County GOP and organizer of the fundraiser, told TheDC at the time. Funk also confirmed that the congresswoman will remain in Iowa for several days after the event.
Talk of a Bachmann presidential campaign has been swirling for weeks. Tuesday morning, one-time candidate Pat Buchannan predicted she would not only enter the race, but will also attract a conservative, populist crowd.
“She’s got the evangelical Christian,” said Buchanan. “She’s populist. She’s an attractive woman. She’s exciting.”
Bachmann, who registers in the single digits in national polls, has met personally with Iowa Governor Terry Branstad at least twice. She’s also made numerous visits to the state. If she runs, Bachmann will benefit greatly from Mike Huckabee’s decision not to run, and is expected to attract much of the former Arkansas governor’s support base.
In an interview with Fox News Tuesday afternoon, Bachmann herself hinted that a decision could come sooner rather than later.
“Our Facebook has been lit up,” Bachmann said. “Our donations are pouring in, and people are saying ‘Michele, jump in. We want you to run.'”
She went on to say, “We had announced earlier that we would be looking at a June entry date for a decision, one way or another, about this race. Possibly, we may move that up.”