U.S. Sen. Cory Booker announced his bid as a Democratic candidate for president in 2020, joining a quickly growing field of candidates seeking to unseat President Donald Trump.
Booker (D-N.J.) tweeted the news this morning at 7:15 a.m., after multiple reports already announced his run.
“I’m running for president. Join me on this journey,” he tweeted.
I’m running for president. Join me on this journey. https://t.co/fEDqOVIfwh pic.twitter.com/h1FTPUYRzo
— Cory Booker (@CoryBooker) February 1, 2019
The announcement was expected. In fact, many have expected it for years.
Booker became the junior senator for New Jersey in 2013 after winning a special election to fill the seat of the late Sen. Frank Lautenberg. He served as mayor of Newark from 2006-13.
From his earliest days of office, his style and charisma have made many suggest he has some of the attributes needed to hold the highest office in the county.
Booker has long branded himself with a strong social media following — both in his tweets, which respond to hate with love, and in the unlimited selfies he takes at any event — and as an aggressive interrogator during the confirmation hearings for Supreme Court Justice Brett Kavanaugh.
In the business world, he is the face behind the Opportunity Zone Act, which, among other areas, benefits his old home of Newark.
The Opportunity Zones are seen as a key economic development tool, in some ways an amplified version of the existing Urban Enterprise Zones already in the state, that could spur greater activity for some of the poorest areas of New Jersey.
Booker also is credited with setting the stage for Newark to become a prosperous city for business again — something he figures to use in his campaign.
