WASHINGTON: US Senator Cory Booker, who gained national prominence in the fight over Supreme Court Justice Brett Kavanaugh, announced on Friday that he would seek the Democratic Party’s nomination for the 2020 presidential election, injecting more youthful energy to the expanding Democratic field.

Booker, 49, became the latest Democrat and the fourth US senator to announce a presidential bid in what is expected to be a crowded and diverse race to be the candidate to try to unseat President Donald Trump.

His announcement came as little surprise. The second-term senator from New Jersey has appeared at political events in Iowa and New Hampshire as speculation mounted that he would parlay the Kavanaugh fracas into a presidential run.

“I believe that we can build a country where no one is forgotten, no one is left behind,” he said in a video on his website. He added that he would focus on creating good jobs and reforming the criminal justice system.

He announced his bid on the first day of Black History Month, mentioning on his website the impact of racial discrimination on his family and a video posted on it emphasised racial justice issues.

Published in Dawn, February 2nd, 2019