Johnny Isakson preps for 2016 reelection

Since in politics it's never too early to start a campaign, Sen. Johnny Isakson (R-Ga) will officially announce next Monday that he is running for 2016 reelection to a third term in the U.S. Senate at an event at the state capitol.

The announcement will take place at 11 a.m. on Nov. 17^th and Republicans Georgia Gov. Nathan Deal, Lt. Gov. Casey Cagle, and House Speaker David Ralston will be in attendance.

Some pundits speculated that Isakson, who is 70 years-old, will retire in 2016. Several Georgia GOP lawmakers, who are members of the U.S. House of Representatives, are allegedly interested in running for the seat – U.S. Reps. Tom Price and Tom Graves have been mentioned.

Isakson's colleague Sen. Saxby Chambliss (R-Ga) is retiring this year, and many experts maintain that Chambliss decided to leave because of a possible challenge in the Republican primary. The senator was sharply criticized by local conservatives when he brokered a deal with Democrats to end the govement shutdown last year.

The GOP field to replace Chambliss in 2014 included eight candidates. The winner was David Perdue, a businessman without any previous political experience.

Like Chambliss, Isakson is considered to be the establishment candidate, and certainly the appearances by the top Georgia Republicans at his formal announcement ceremony confirm that.  Isakson faithfully campaigned for Deal and Perdue this year, and no doubt he'll call on them to retu the favor in 2016.

The local tea parties and many state conservatives, including conservative talk-show hosts, are not happy with Isakson for seeking compromises with Senate Democrats. While Isakson was not as involved in the govement shutdown talks as Chambliss, he did vote for a bill that funded the govement when conservatives were against it.

Isakson is certainly a veteran politician. He was first elected to Georgia House of Representatives in 1976 and has held elected office ever since.

In Washington, he's considered a conservative Republican and has a "100" rating from the American Conservative Union. He voted against the latest immigration proposal, which included legalization pathway for illegal immigrants, as well as the Affordable Care Act (ACA or Obamacare), President Barack Obama's signature health care law.

It should be expected that Isakson will vote decidedly conservative for the next two years. Elections in the presidential year are particularly tough for Republicans, especially in the red states with changing demographics - like Georgia.  If he survives the GOP primary, Isakson will need conservative support to win against a Democrat in 2016.