Two liberal activist groups trying to draft Sen. Elizabeth Warren of Massachusetts into the 2016 presidential race are officially suspending the effort next week.
The groups Democracy for America and MoveOn.org had launched the campaign in December 2014. They said Tuesday that on June 8, supporters will deliver to Ms. Warren a petition with more than 365,000 signatures asking her to enter the presidential race and then “rest their case and suspend their draft effort,” turning their focus to fighting alongside Ms. Warren on issues like a trade deal with Pacific Rim nations that has pitted President Obama against liberals in his own party.
The campaign touted opening field offices in Iowa and New Hampshire and building a network of grassroots leaders in those early states, as well as holding more than 400 events since the launch.
“Even without her in the race, Elizabeth Warren and the Run Warren Run campaign she inspired have already transformed the 2016 presidential election by focusing every single Democratic candidate on combatting our country’s income inequality crisis,” said Charles Chamberlain, executive director of Democracy for America.
“We still think there’s plenty of time for Sen. Warren to change her mind, but now that we’ve shown that she has the support she would need to mount a winning a campaign, we’re excited to take the grassroots juggernaut we’ve built with our members and stand shoulder-to-shoulder with Warren in the battles ahead,” she said.
Ms. Warren has repeatedly said she is not running for president in 2016. Former Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton is the frontrunner to secure the Democratic nomination, but declared rivals on the Democratic side, such as Sen. Bernie Sanders of Vermont and former Maryland Gov. Martin O’Malley, are trying to stake out positions on Mrs. Clinton’s left flank on issues like the Trans-Pacific Partnership and Wall Street reform.
• David Sherfinski can be reached at dsherfinski@washingtontimes.com.
Please read our comment policy before commenting.