Amy Klobuchar to drop out of 2020 race and endorse Joe Biden day before Super Tuesday
Decision comes as moderate Democrats have rushed to coalesce support behind former vice president
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Your support makes all the difference.Amy Klobuchar is ending her bid for the 2020 Democratic nomination, and plans on endorsing Joe Biden at a rally in Dallas on Monday evening — the night before Super Tuesday.
Ms Klobuchar, a senator from Minnesota, was not expected to perform when 14 states take to the polls on Tuesday representing the largest delegate haul of the season, and her decision to drop out marks the latest signal that moderate Democrats are attempting to coalesce around Mr Biden and give him a fighting chance against the race's front-runner, Bernie Sanders.
Just a day before Ms Klobuchar's decision was made public, fellow midwesterner Pete Buttigieg announced he was withdrawing as well.
From the moment Ms Klobuchar announced her long shot bid for the Democratic nomination last February, Ms Klobuchar has failed to garner much enthusiasm in polls or from the press, even as she cast her self as the pragmatic choice for voters to take on Donald Trump in November.
Her presidential run was given a momentary boost following the New Hampshire primary, where she came in third-place, but has otherwise performed poorly in the other three states that have voted so-far.
Her home state of Minnesota is among those that will vote on Tuesday, and it was that contest that she appeared most likely to do well in, with Mr Sanders, Mr Biden and Michael Bloomberg sucking up the attention across most of the rest of the country.
Her endorsement of Mr Biden comes following considerable consternation among moderate Democrats that Mr Sanders is amassing a formidable delegate lead that could become insurmountable after Super Tuesday.
Still, even with that focusing of establishment support behind Mr Biden — the former vice president's campaign announced a series of endorsements on Monday before Ms Klobuchar's decision was known — it is unclear that the Vermont senator's momentum can overcome, especially given his strong support in western states and delegate rich California, which votes on Tuesday.
And, with 46 states left to vote, early forecasts have indicated a contested convention may be the most likely outcome of the race.
Beyond Mr Sanders, Mr Biden and Mr Bloomberg, just Elizabeth Warren and Tulsi Gabbard remain in contention for the Democratic nomination. Ms Gabbard has so far won no delegates, and has largely been ignored by the media and Democratic Party. Ms Warren, who once led polls in the Democratic field, has promised to stay in the race until the convention.
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