Nashville, Tennessee - Republican state Sen. Jim Tracy says he is "strongly considering" a challenge Democratic U.S. Rep. Bart Gordon next year.

Tracy is a Shelbyville insurance agent and chairman of the Senate Transportation Committee. He says he plans to make up his mind by the end of the holiday season.

Gordon has represented the 15-county 6th Congressional District since 1984 and serves as chairman of the House Science and Technology Committee.

Gordon and fellow Democratic Reps. John Tanner and Lincoln Davis have each already drawn Republican challengers.

But none is as politically experienced as Tracy, who has served in the Senate since 2005 and played in a key role in promoting Republican Pat Marsh's successful campaign to win a longtime Democratic state House seat in a special election last month.