What to Know
- Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand officially threw her hat into the 2020 presidential race Wednesday morning, saying she will run for president
- Gillibrand joins what is expected to be a crowded primary field for the Democratic nomination
- Gillibrand was appointed to the Senate in 2009 to succeed Hillary Clinton and easily won re-election, most recently in November
Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand officially threw her hat into the 2020 presidential race Wednesday morning — a day after saying she would be launching an exploratory committee.
The New York senator made the official announcement during a brief press conference in front of what she described as her favorite diner in Troy, New York.
"I'm going to run for president of the United States, because as a young mom, I will fight for your children as hard as I would fight for my own," she said.
Gillibrand first announced her plans to launch the committee on "The Late Show with Stephen Colbert" Tuesday evening, listing a series of issues she'd tackle as president, including better health care for families, stronger public schools and more accessible job training.
"... I know that I have the compassion, and the courage, and the fearless determination that is necessary to get this done," she said Wednesday. "And I know this because of all the people on whose shoulders I stand. All the people that have come before me to fight for what’s right.”
Gillibrand, 52, has already made plans to campaign in Iowa over the weekend, more than a year before the leadoff caucus state votes.
She joins what is expected to be a crowded primary field for the Democratic nomination that could feature more than a dozen candidates. Already, Massachusetts Sen. Elizabeth Warren has announced her own exploratory efforts, and decisions by a number of other senators are expected in the coming weeks.
Gillibrand, who was appointed to the Senate in 2009 to fill the seat vacated by Hillary Clinton, has been among the Senate's most vocal members on issues like sexual harassment, military sexual assault, equal pay for women and family leave, issues that could be central to her presidential campaign.
"I'm going to fight for other people's kids as hard as I would fight for my own," said Gillibrand, a mother of two sons, ages 10 and 15.
As she works to distinguish herself from likely rivals, Gillibrand will be able to draw from the more than $10.5 million left over from her 2018 re-election campaign that she can use toward a presidential run.
TONIGHT: @SenGillibrand stops by @colbertlateshow to announce that she is forming an exploratory committee to run for President of the United States! #LSSC pic.twitter.com/vPUpF1gs8z
— The Late Show (@colbertlateshow) January 15, 2019
Gillibrand pledged during her Senate campaign that she would serve out her six-year term if re-elected.
She will use Troy, New York, where she lives, as a home base for her presidential efforts.
Near the end of their interview, Colbert presented Gillibrand with a basket of campaign gifts, including an ear of yellow corn to wave in Iowa, a piece of granite for New Hampshire and a one-of-a-kind button that reads "I announced on the Late Show with Stephen Colbert."
