South Carolina Sen. Tim Scott says he believes the campaigns of some of his rivals in the race for the Republican presidential nomination are behind recent stories spotlighting that he is the only major candidate who has never been married.
“I think people plant stories as we rise in the polls, as more people show up, people get very nervous and what they try to do is not look for something of substance to debate you on. They look for something to distract the people on,” Scott charged Wednesday during an interview with Fox News Digital in New Hampshire.
The 57-year-old Scott said last weekend that he is “dating a lovely Christian girl,” as he addressed a large group of influential voters of faith in the Iowa, the state that leads off the GOP nominating calendar.
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Scott — who if elected president would be the first bachelor in the White House in more than a century — has been reluctant to share much about his private life. In a handful of interviews earlier this year, he did reveal that he is dating a woman, but he has kept her identity private.
However, his unmarried status has made headlines in recent weeks, in the wake of an article by Axios which suggested some Republican donors are concerned about him being unmarried.
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Although the number of adults who remain single later in life has edged up in recent years, many socially conservative Republicans firmly hold to traditional values regarding marriage and families.
This is not the first time Scott has pointed fingers at rival campaigns over the stories about his unmarried status.
“People plant stories that have conversations to distract from our rise in the polls, to distract from our size of our audience,” Scott told Fox News Digital two weeks ago during a previous swing through New Hampshire, the state that holds the first primary and second overall contest in the GOP nominating calendar.
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Scott did not mention — in either interview — a specific rival campaign when placing blame.
Grover Cleveland, who first won the White House in 1884, was the last unmarried president elected, but he tied the knot two years later.
James Buchanan, who served one term from 1857-1861, was the last president to remain a lifelong bachelor.
Four years ago as he ran for president, Democratic Sen. Cory Booker’s bachelor status also made a few headlines.
Fox News’ Kirill Clark contributed to this report
