Augusta businessman Rick W. Allen says he's running again for the Republican nomination to challenge the Deep South's last white Democratic congressman: Rep. John Barrow.

Allen announced his 2014 campaign for eastern Georgia's 12th Congressional District on Tuesday. The Augusta construction company owner was the runner-up in last year's Republican primary election.

Allen spent $610,000 of his own money on the 2012 primary race but lost the GOP nomination to state Rep. Lee Anderson of Grovetown. Barrow of Augusta ended up defeating Anderson to win a fifth term.

The national Republican Party has already declared Barrow one of its top Democratic targets in 2014.

Allen isn't the only Republican seeking a comeback in Barrow's district. Longtime congressional aide John Stone, who challenged Barrow and lost in 2008, is also running.

Tags: politics, Congress, John Barrow, Rick W. Allen