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Scott Brown acknowledges he faces an uphill battle as a Republican seeking to fill the late Ted Kennedy's U.S. Senate seat.

It has been more than a decade since Massachusetts voters have sent a Republican to Congress, and 30 years since the state's last Republican senator left office. Brown is one of only five Republicans in the state Senate.

But Brown, 50, doesn't believe a Democrat victory is inevitable.

"This isn't a Democratic seat, it's a seat of the people of Massachusetts," he said.

He points to his 2004 victory in a special election to fill a seat that had previously been in the hands of a Democrat. Brown won his third election with a margin of 59-41 percent in 2008, gathering more votes in his district than Barack Obama did in the presidential race.

"I would not have been overwhelmingly re-elected if I didn't know how to work across party lines," Brown said. "If the Democrats have a good idea, I'd be happy to vote with them - and if the Republicans have a good idea, I'd be happy to vote with them."

Massachusetts has three times as many registered Democrats as Republicans, but more than half the state remains independent.

Brown contends there are a lot of people out there who aren't represented by the 12 Democrats currently in Washington.

Republican strategist Charley Manning, who helped run Mitt Romney's Senate campaign against Kennedy in 1994, agrees.

"All four of the Democratic candidates are running far left campaigns," he said. "I know what a good campaigner Scott is. He's a good guy and holds a good, moderate position for voters.

Rep. Betty Poirier, R-North Attleboro, said Brown will represent people who aren't being heard.

"Frankly, we need balance," Poirier said. "Scott will provide the other point of view."

She said voters should be confident in Brown's ability to represent them in Washington.

"We've worked together, we've campaigned together," Poirier said. "He's very diligent and compassionate." Brown is a fiscal conservative who has never voted for a tax increase. He said he's running, in part, to offer an alternative to the spending policies of Washington.

"These are not Republican issues," Brown said. "These are people issues."

"I'm for free enterprise, low taxes, and less government involvement," Brown said. "Government has a place - it absolutely has a place - but we need to know when to get out of the way."

He's particularly worried about the government's role in growing national deficit.

"I have some very great concerns about how our children, and at this point our grandchildren, will pay this back," he said.

Brown said his own daughters' futures are high on his priority list.

He has two daughters with his wife of 23 years, TV station WCVB reporter Gail Huff. Arianna attends Syracuse University and Ayla is a basketball standout at Boston College.

In 2006, Ayla made it to the top 16 on American Idol.

"My first priority is my family," Brown said.

An attempt to defend his family led to controversy in 2007 when he was invited to speak at King Philip Regional High School in Wrentham.

Brown opened his speech by reading out Facebook comments directed against his stance against gay marriage, many of which contained obscenities. He also named King Philip students who had directed similar comments to his daughter, Ayla.

He has since told reporters that he does not regret sticking up for his family, and points out that he does support civil unions for same-sex couples.

Brown grew up in Massachusetts, and is a graduate of Wakefield High School, Tufts University and Boston College Law School.

While at law school, Brown posed for a centerfold in Cosmopolitan as the winner of the magazine's "America's Sexiest Man" competition. He said he used the $1,000 to pay part of his law school tuition.

The magazine joked this September about Brown's appearance in the pages of the June 1982 issue, suggesting a range of new campaign slogans for the candidate, asking "Who needs Joe Plumber when you can have Scott six-pack?"

In 1982, Brown told the magazine he was "a bit of a patriot," a fitting description for someone who has spent 30 years as a member of the Massachusetts National Guard.

He has served in a variety of positions with the Guard at home and abroad, and is currently a lieutenant colonel in the Judge Advocate General's Corps. He said his service gives him experience that his competitors lack.

"I have a good feel for what role we have in the world," Brown said. "I take that seriously."

Brown's military experience has informed his stance on the wars being fought in Iraq and Afghanistan. He said he appreciates President Barack Obama's thoughtfulness when it comes to American involvement in both regions.

"I know the president thinks long and hard before sending our men and women into harms way," Brown said.

But Brown said that when it comes to strategy, generals, not politicians, are best equipped to make those decisions.

"If they say we need to adjust, adapt or add more troops, we should do that," Brown said.

Between his responsibilities to his family, his constituents and his country, Brown still manages to find time for a more personal pursuit.

He is a keen triathlon competitor, and has competed in races across the country.

"I don't sleep a lot," he laughed.

Brown will get even less sleep over the next few months as he campaigns and raises funds, but he promises his constituents that it won't interfere with his state Senate duties.

"I haven't missed a vote yet since I started running, and I don't plan to," Brown said. "I have an obligation."