Washington — House Speaker Nancy Pelosi endorsed Joe Biden for president Monday, saying that his work helping the country recover from the 2008 recession and role in ushering the Affordable Care Act through Congress make him well-prepared to lead the country as it looks toward recovery from the coronavirus pandemic.
“Elections are about the future,” Pelosi, a Democrat from California, said in a three-minute-long video announcing her endorsement. “Now more than ever, we need a forward looking, battle-testing leader who will fight for the people. A president with the values, experience and the strategic thinking to bring our nation together and build a better, fair world for our children.”
Pelosi said Biden will be an “extraordinary president” and cited his work with U.S. service members and veterans, and victims of gun violence as evidence that he is the “personification of hope and courage, values, authenticity and integrity.”
“Joe Biden brings values and integrity to work every day because he never forgets his roots,” she said.
Pelosi had declined to back a presidential candidate during the primary season and instead said her responsibility was on ensuring Democrats maintain control of the House in November. Pelosi said earlier this year that regardless of who the nominee is, the party would unify around them with the goal of limiting President Trump to one term.
Pelosi is the latest in a string of Democratic leaders to throw their support behind Biden. Earlier this month, former President Barack Obama endorsed his former vice president, followed by Massachusetts Senator Elizabeth Warren, who was the last of the major 2020 Democratic presidential candidates to announce her support for Biden.
Vermont Senator Bernie Sanders, who was the last candidate running against Biden in the race for the Democratic presidential nomination, endorsed the former vice president after suspending his presidential campaign in early April.
Biden, the last of the Democratic presidential candidates still in the race, has not yet secured the 1,991 delegates needed to lock up the nomination. But the party’s biggest organizations and the Democratic National Committee are throwing their financial weight behind him as they go up against the Trump campaign’s massive war chest.
On Friday, Biden and the Democratic National Committee joined fundraising arms to create the “Biden Victory Fund.” The maximum contribution to the fund will be $360,000.
Biden’s vice presidential search is also underway, and he has committed to selecting a woman as his running mate.
