Former Democratic President Jimmy Carter has a favorite in the race for the Republican nomination for president.
In an interview printed Wednesday by CNN, Carter said that Jon Huntsman is “very attractive to me personally.”
Huntsman formed a PAC on Tuesday, a move widely considered a step to launching a run for president.
The former Utah governor and former Ambassador to China is disliked by some conservatives for being a moderate Republican closely affiliated with the Obama administration.
Carter told CNN that despite his attraction to Huntsman, his “intention is to vote for the Democratic candidate.”
In April, The Daily Caller published fawning letters written by Huntsman to President Obama and former President Bill Clinton. Huntsman called Obama a “remarkable leader” and complimented Clinton’s “brilliant analysis of world events.”
On Tuesday, Carter told CNN, “I still believe that racial issue is one of the factors, not the only factor, in people accusing President Obama of not being a citizen of America.”
Carter addressed possible presidential candidate Donald Trump’s “birther” crusade, saying, “Donald Trump was apparently just using it to get publicity for himself and to separate himself from the even more rational Republicans.”