Pro-reparations progressive Democrat who wants ICE abolished mounts long shot Senate bid to succeed McConnell

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Former Kentucky state Rep. Charles Booker — a progressive Democrat who has advocated far-left policies, including "Medicare for All" and the abolition of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) — has launched a U.S. Senate bid to succeed outgoing Republican Sen. Mitch McConnell, who announced earlier this year his current term will be his last.

"Now more than ever, we need leadership that is committed to the work of ending generational poverty and uprooting structural racism, delivering on system-changing policies like Medicare for All, Universal Basic Income, Reparations, and Universal Childcare," Booker asserted in part of a lengthy statement on his campaign website.

"We need leadership that will drive the charge for bold policies like 40 for 40, so that anyone working a 40-hour work week will make a guaranteed minimum of $40,000 a year," he declared.

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Democrat Charles Booker, left, has launched a U.S. Senate bid to succeed outgoing Republican Sen. Mitch McConnell, right, of Kentucky. (Getty Images)

Booker declared in an X post last month that "ICE really does need to be abolished." 

In another post, he wrote, "It really is a damn shame that we still don’t have universal healthcare in the U.S. of America. We need Medicare for All."

His latest bid may be a long shot. Kentuckians have not had a Democrat representing them in the Senate so far during the 21st century.

It is Booker's third run for Senate.

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Booker is running for U.S. Senate a third time. (Andrew Harnik/Getty Images)

In 2022, Booker was decisively defeated by incumbent Republican Sen. Rand Paul. 

Booker lost the 2020 Democratic U.S. Senate primary in the Bluegrass State to Amy McGrath, who lost to incumbent Republican Sen. McConnell in the general election later that year. 

McConnell, 83, has served in the Senate since 1985. 

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Sen. Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., has served in Washington, D.C., for four decades. (Aaron Schwartz/Bloomberg via Getty Images)

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In September, Booker announced, "For over two years, I have had the distinct honor of serving the people of Kentucky in the office of Governor Andy Beshear. 

"I am humbled and excited to announce that today was officially my last day."

The Booker campaign did not immediately respond to Fox News Digital’s request for comment.

Alex Nitzberg is a writer for Fox News Digital.

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