LANSING, Mich. - Former Survivor contestant Michael Skupin, who had been mulling a career in politics, says he won't be running for the U.S. Senate in 2002. Skupin said Monday he can't take the necessary time away from his family and his new company, Michael Skupin Ministries, which fights alcohol and drug addiction. Skupin also co-owns a religious software company.

I have three children and one on the way and raising a good Christian family where the father is home is more important than any position, he said in a news release. I want to be certain I'm doing the right thing for them.

Skupin, 39, left the CBS-TV reality show Survivor: The Australian Outback after suffering burns during the sixth week.

In June, he announced that he was considering a run against U.S. Sen. Carl Levin, a popular Democrat from Detroit who has served in the Senate since 1978.

Skupin, from the Detroit suburb of White Lake Township, said Monday that he plans to stay active in the Republican party and possibly consider another race in the future.

I know that I will have the opportunity again when the timing is better, Skupin told The Associated Press.