HARRISBURG, Pa. (WHTM) – Republican State Senator and former gubernatorial candidate Doug Mastriano told Politico he is considering a run for U.S. Senate in 2024.

According to POLITICO, during a sit-down interview, Mastriano confirmed he is “praying” about whether to enter the race. The Politico report says “After God, (Mastriano’s) wife, Rebbie, will have the final word” on whether her husband will run for Senate.

“We’ve seen people in the past, other Republican gubernatorial candidates, they rise and they disappear when they lose. Why?” he said during the POLITICO interview. “You have people that love you and support you.”

Mastriano told POLITICO he is ruling out a run against Republican Congressman John Joyce, saying “Congressman Joyce and myself are friends.”

A State Senator representing Franklin County since 2019, Mastriano won the 2022 Republican gubernatorial primary with 43.82% support amid a crowded field that included nine Republicans on the ballot.

Mastriano’s wave to the top of the ballot benefited from an endorsement from former President Donald Trump days before the primary.

However, Mastriano would go on to lose the general election to Josh Shapiro by nearly 800,000 votes. Shapiro, then the state’s Attorney General, became the first Pennsylvania gubernatorial candidate to receive three million votes in a general election.

“What do you do with a movement of 2.2 million?” Mastriano told POLITICO, referring to the number of votes he received in the gubernatorial election, “We’re keeping it alive.”

Interest in the 2024 U.S. Senate race has begun to pick up steam in recent weeks with former hedge fund CEO Dave McCormick reportedly considering another run for Senate.

McCormick narrowly lost the 2022 Republican primary to Dr. Mehmet Oz by less than 1,000 votes. Oz lost the general election to Democrat John Fetterman.

Incumbent Democrat U.S. Senator Bob Casey Jr. has not yet publicly pledged whether he will run for re-election as he recovers from prostate cancer surgery.

In January Cook Political Report listed Casey’s seat as one of five “leaning Democrat.” 

At this point, no candidates have announced their intentions to run for Pennsylvania’s Senate seat in 2024.