Beto O'Rourke, the former Texas Representative formally announced his intent to run for the presidency in the US 2020 elections. The announcement finally ended the speculations that he will seek the presidential nomination as his popularity in the political arena soars.
According to The Washington Post, Beto O'Rourke's popularity has grown after he challenged Senator Ted Cruz last year. Before that happened, the politician is only well-known in his El Paso hometown.
Moreover, he became a sensation during a campaign during a grassroots campaign where social media was utilized to reach out to the younger generation of voters as well as the minorities. In that event, he managed to get within 3 percentage points of upsetting Cruz in the country's largest red state and this fueled the talks that he has higher ambitions in politics.
In 2017, O'Rourke declared his candidacy for a Senate seat held by Republican Ted Cruz then a year after, in March 2018, he became the Democratic Party nominee, after gaining 61.8 percent of the primary vote. Now the former rocker must prove that he can also conquer a much bigger field as he did in Texas.
At any rate, in the announcement for his bid in the US presidential election next year, he said through a video, "I am running to serve you as the next president. The challenges we face are the greatest in living memory. No one person can meet them on their own. Only this country can do that, and only if we build a movement that includes all of us."
"This is a defining moment of truth for this country and for every single one of us," O'Rourke added. "The challenges that we face right now, the interconnected crises in our economy, our democracy, and our climate have never been greater."
He ended his statements by saying that his candidacy will be a positive campaign with a goal of bringing out the best from everyone. The Texan politician also said that he seeks to "unite a very divided country.
In his interview with Vanity Fair, Beto O'Rourke also said that he was "born to do this," referring to his bid to be elected as the 46th president of the United State.
Beto O'Rourke is the 5th Democrat to proclaim his intention to run for the presidency. He joins Elizabeth Warren, Bernie Sanders, Kamala Harris, Amy Klobuchar and more in the race to the White House.
