Sen. Rand Paul (R-Ky.) got a green light for launching a presidential bid Saturday, with Republican party leaders in Kentucky agreeing to preliminarily approve a system allowing Paul to run for the White House while seeking reelection to the Senate.

The state party's executive committee met for nearly two hours Saturday behind closed doors in Bowling Green before unanimously approving Paul's request to hold a presidential caucus in 2016 instead of a primary election, according to The Courier-Journal.

Kentucky law bars a candidate from running for multiple offices on the same ballot. Paul had announced in December his intention to pursue reelection to Senate and is expected to make an announcement on a presidential bid early next month.