Some of Kentucky U.S. Sen. Rand Paul's top supporters in the state legislature are endorsing Marco Rubio ahead of the state's Republican presidential caucus next month.
State party leaders scheduled a presidential caucus for March 5 so that Paul could avoid a state law banning candidates from running for two offices at the same time. But Paul ended his presidential campaign last week after a poor showing in the Iowa caucuses and will instead focus on his Senate re-election.
Most of Kentucky's Republican elected officials had not publicly supported a candidate out of respect for Paul. Monday, Rubio's campaign announced 24 state lawmakers endorsed him. They include state Rep. Jeff Hoover, the top Republican in the Kentucky House, and state Sen. Ralph Alvarado, who introduced Paul at his presidential campaign kickoff rally last year.
