Relaunching her political operation

Klobuchar launches campaign to aid Senate, House Dems in 2020

The former presidential candidate is relaunching her political operation after dropping out of the 2020 race and endorsing Joe Biden.

By ELENA SCHNEIDER

Amy Klobuchar is kicking off her next act.

Two months after ending her presidential campaign and amid vice presidential speculation, the Minnesota Democrat is launching a new effort to help direct money and campaign help to down-ballot Democrats. The endeavor — called the Win Big Project, a play on one of Klobuchar’s 2020 campaign slogans — started on Friday by endorsing a slate of a dozen House and Senate candidates.

Klobuchar endorsed four Senate challengers: Cal Cunningham in North Carolina, Jamie Harrison in South Carolina, Mark Kelly in Arizona and Ben Ray Lujan in New Mexico. But she didn’t weigh in on any of the contested Democratic primaries coming up in June. She also backed three House challengers, including Dan Feehan, Jackie Gordon and Christy Smith.

“It’s not enough to just win back the White House and eke out a victory on Election Night,” said Justin Buoen, a senior adviser for Klobuchar and her former presidential campaign manager. “We need to win big so we can take back the U.S. Senate, keep the House and focus on an agenda and policies that will improve people’s lives. We can do that by electing Democrats in blue, purple, and red districts and states across the country.”

Klobuchar, who dropped out of the presidential primary and endorsed Joe Biden a day before Super Tuesday, is among the contenders being considered for Biden’s ticket. Her group — a joint effort of her PAC, Follow the North Star PAC, and her reelection committee, Klobuchar for Minnesota — joins a crowded collection of post-presidential campaign vehicles also aimed at growing the Democratic bench and its pipeline of candidates. Those include Pete Buttigieg’s Win The Era PAC and Kamala Harris’ Fearless For the People PAC.

Klobuchar also endorsed two senators running for reelection, Sen. Jeanne Shaheen (D-N.H.) and Sen. Tina Smith (D-Minn.), and three House members: Reps. Anthony Brindisi (D-N.Y.), Lizzie Fletcher (D-Texas) and Xochitl Torres Small (D-N.M.).