Next week, Republican David Gerson will kick off his 2014 campaign against Republican U.S. Rep. John Kline.

"We know the number one people are leaving our party is the lessor of two evils argument," Gerson said. "We want to give people a choice."

He said Kline, first elected in 2002, espouses the Republican values of "limited government, individual liberty and free markets" but has not voted those values.

Gerson ran against Kline in a primary in the south suburban and rural Second Congressional District last year and got 15 percent of the vote.

"Last year, we really were just trying to send a message to John Kline," Gerson said. "We didn't run a serious campaign last time."

This year Gerson is starting earlier and has already spoken at local Republican groups, made thousands of calls to activists and primary voters, he said. He also has Marianne Stebbins, who coordinated presidential candidate Ron Paul's well organized Minnesota campaign last year, as his campaign co-chair.

"We are very confident that we are going to be taking the endorsement," he said. "We are the Republican Party."

Gerson says on his campaign website that he will abide by the endorsement, which means he will not run in an August primary if local Republicans do not give him the nod in the Spring.

Asked about Gerson's plans, Troy Young, Kline's spokesman said: "Congressman Kline will continue fighting for all Minnesotans as their premiums skyrocket or they are losing their health insurance altogether due to the ObamaCare train wreck that is wreaking havoc on our economy."

On Monday morning, Gerson will hold a media event at the Minnesota Capitol's state office building to announce his plans to seek the Republican endorsement.