Jan. 17 (Bloomberg) -- Mississippi Republican Trent Lott said he will seek a fourth term in the Senate so he can help his home state recover from Hurricane Katrina.

``This is no time for me or any of us to think about quitting,'' Lott said at a news conference in Pascagoula, Mississippi. ``I want you to know that as long as Mississippi is hurting and needs help, I'll be there for this state.''

The decision by Lott, who served as Senate majority leader from 1996 to 2002, spares the Republican Party from having to defend an open seat in this year's midterm elections.

The lawmaker had fed speculation that he might retire by telling a local newspaper last month that he needed ``a little more income'' after the hurricane destroyed his home in Pascagoula.

Lott sued his insurer, State Farm Fire & Casualty Co., to force it to pay for rebuilding after the company said Lott's policy didn't cover the damages. Lott told the Biloxi, Mississippi, Sun Herald last month that the waterfront home was his ``nest egg.''

The lawmaker also published a memoir last fall in which he criticized some of his Senate colleagues, which also spurred speculation over the Republican's future in Washington.

While hinting at retirement, Lott had also said he wanted to remain in office to make sure the federal government helps to rebuild Mississippi. Last month he said he was mulling another run for majority leader. Lott today didn't rule out seeking a leadership post.

`Never Been Shy'

``I've never been shy about trying to get in a position where I could do the most that I could for the people that I care about in Mississippi and America,'' Lott said. ``So the options are open.''

Lott was forced out of the majority leader's job in 2002, after he praised Strom Thurmond's 1948 segregationist campaign for president at a 100th birthday party for the former senator from South Carolina. Lott said if the rest of the country had followed Mississippi's lead in voting for Thurmond, ``we wouldn't have had all these problems over all these years.''

Public apologies didn't stem the ensuing controversy and Lott stepped down. He was replaced with Senator Bill Frist, a Republican from Tennessee.

Marty Wiseman, the head of the John C. Stennis Institute for Government at Mississippi State University, said Democrats would have had a chance at the seat if Lott had opted for retirement. With Lott in the race, the seat will likely remain in Republican hands, Wiseman said.

Lott, who was re-elected in 2000 with 66 percent of the vote, now has $1.2 million in his campaign account, according to the Federal Election Commission.

Lott serves on the Senate Finance Committee, chairs the Senate Rules and Administration Committee, and also heads up a Senate Commerce subcommittee that drafts legislation affecting auto safety.

To contact the reporter on this story: Brian Faler in Washington at bfaler@bloomberg.net.

Last Updated: January 17, 2006 13:53 EST