Warren Announces Candidacy, Other Democrats to Follow

Anna Farrar, News Editor

Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) announced her bid for the 2020 Presidential election on Dec. 31. She is the first of many Democrats expected to run against Trump in the upcoming race. In fact, according to the New York Times, around 30 Democrats are toying with the idea of running, but none are an instant front-runner or prominent name.

Senior Erin Dowdy will be voting in November 2020 for a Democrat, but doesn’t really have any candidate in mind. Dowdy, along with other current seniors and juniors, will be eligible to vote in the upcoming months.

“I’m not particularly excited about anyone,” Dowdy said. “I’d probably vote for Warren over anybody else.”

After Warren’s New Year’s Eve announcement, many other candidates are expected to disclose their candidacy against President Trump in 2020.

Former Vice President Joe Biden leads the pack in well-known Democrats. Though Biden hasn’t officially announced his decision to run yet, he returned to Iowa before the midterms in 2018 which showed that many supporters are eager for him to run, according to CNN News. Sen. Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.) supports Biden in his unconfirmed candidacy, over her California colleague, Sen. Kamala Harris (D-Calif.) who is expected to reveal her candidacy in the upcoming weeks.

“Joe was chairman of the Judiciary (Committee) when he came to this place. I’ve watched him as vice president, I’ve seen him operate, I’ve seen him perform,” Feinstein told Politico. “He brings a level of experience and seniority, which I think is really important.”

Along with Biden, Sen. Bernie Sanders (D-Vt.) also shows potential among voters as the next Democratic nominee. After a losing but successful campaign against Hillary Clinton in 2016, Sanders could appeal to the more populist Democrats, rather than Clinton’s more central-left approach.

“People are still very passionate about Bernie,” Mandy Nunes Hennessey, a 2016 Sanders staffer said. “And what we keep hearing is we can’t afford a gradualist when it comes to the climate crisis or Medicare for All. Bernie is the only person who’s going to move these progressive policies forward in a way that is going to impact people quickly.”

However, many Democratic voters are looking for a newcomer to ensure that President Trump will not get a second term. Rep. Beto O’Rourke’s campaign against Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Tex.) in the 2018 midterms caught the nation’s attention before his 2 percent loss to Cruz, according to Real Clear Politics. O’Rourke is now being considered by some for the presidential nomination.

According to Dowdy, O’Rourke will not appeal to Democrats around America.

“He’s not very liberal for a liberal,” Dowdy said. “He’s a Democrat and against Ted Cruz. That’s all he’s been super clear on.”

Though Dowdy is interested in Sen. Warren’s campaign, she’s excited to see what other candidates will come forward.

“Frankly I don’t think anyone is excited to vote for her, so if she could change that (she could be successful),” Dowdy said. “But a lot of people will vote for anyone who isn’t Trump.”