Ex-KKK leader David Duke says he plans to run for US Senate

BATON ROUGE, La. (AP) — Former Ku Klux Klan leader David Duke says he plans to run for U.S. Senate in Louisiana.

David Duke

Duke’s announcement came Friday on his website.

A registered Republican, he would be seeking an open seat vacated by Republican David Vitter.

Duke’s announcement comes as Louisiana is grappling with deep racial tensions after the shooting death of a black man by white police officers and the killing of three law enforcement officers by a black man.

A white supremacist, Duke served one term as a state representative representing suburban New Orleans more than two decades ago. He ran unsuccessfully for governor in 1991 against Democrat Edwin Edwards.

Duke is a convicted felon, pleading guilty in 2002 to bilking his supporters and cheating on his taxes. He spent a year in federal prison.

The Republican Party of Louisiana is condemning the former KKK leader. Chairman Roger Villere says in a statement issued Friday that the party vehemently opposes Duke’s candidacy, calling him “a convicted felon and a hate-filled fraud who does not embody the values of the Republican Party.”