CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va. (CBS19 NEWS) -- South Carolina Senator Tim Scott announced his candidacy for president Monday.

There are now six Republicans in the race and what's interesting is the diversity of the candidate pool so far and how that could help a former president secure the Republican nomination.

"From Trump's perspective, the more the merrier," said J. Miles Coleman with the University of Virginia Center for Politics.

Coleman says this could be good for Trump, who remains the Republican front-runner. The more other candidates split votes, the better for the former president.

"A lot of people were entertaining that we have a two-person show between Trump and DeSantis. That looks like it definitely won't be the case anymore," he said.

Coleman says the Republicans are fielding a much more diverse pool of candidates this year, but that doesn't mean they automatically bring more people to the GOP.

"It’s one thing to be culturally or racially significant, it’s another thing to actively reach out to those voters, because voters don't like being taken for granted," Coleman said.

And that could change how they campaign.

"The other Republican candidates are going to try to think of other creative ways to get ahead, including certain areas Republicans don't usually reach out to," Coleman said.

Scott is the second person to enter the race from South Carolina. The other is former Governor Nikki Haley, who appointed Scott to the U.S. Senate more than a decade ago.

"I'm wondering if she's regretting making that appointment," Coleman said.

Coleman says he's interested to see how this will affect localities in their state.

"Some officials say they are going to endorse both Haley and Scott or 'I'm not going to endorse either or I'm going to stick with Trump.’ Often times those officials can deliver votes," he said.

Coleman thinks other Republicans could add themselves to the race soon, like Florida Governor Ron DeSantis who is expected to make his announcement sometime this week.