Despite the extreme cold weather and snowy day, thousands of Minnesotans frantically congregated in Boom Island Park on Sunday for one reason—to witness the commemorative announcement from Senator Amy Klobuchar launching her presidential bid. Klobuchar, the fifth woman to enter the presidential race after Elizabeth Warren’s announcement earlier that day, joined a crowded field of candidates for the Democratic nomination. 

“On an island in the middle of the mighty Mississippi, in our nation’s heartland, at a time when we must heal the heart of our democracy and renew our commitment to the common good, I stand before you as the granddaughter of an iron ore miner, the daughter of a teacher and a newspaperman, the first woman elected to the United States Senate from the state of Minnesota, to announce my candidacy for president of the United States,” Klobuchar said.

Klobuchar, a three-time senator of the state of Minnesota, offers a pragmatic approach that can heavily influence her popularity with independent voters or moderates. Klobuchar hasn’t drawn overwhelming support just from urban and suburban areas—she has also drawn support rural areas, including numerous counties that voted for Trump in 2016. Klobuchar, who has prided herself for achieving results through coalitions from both sides of the political aisle, can sway voters in Midwestern states like Iowa, Wisconsin, and Michigan that went red in the 2016 presidential cycle.

In the midst of thick snow, sub-freezing temperatures, and low visibility, Klobuchar delivered a vitalizing speech addressing how she would tackle our nation’s challenges as our Commander in Chief. 

“There are insidious forces every day that are trying to make it harder for people to vote, trying to drown out our voices with big money. It’s time to organize. Time to galvanize. Time to take back our democracy. It’s time, America! Time to pass a constitutional amendment to overturn Citizens United and get the dark money out of our politics. It’s time to stop discriminatory actions by restoring the Voting Rights Act. Time to pass my bill to automatically register every young person to vote when they turn 18,” Klobuchar said to an energized, large crowd.

The Minnesota Senator addressed other issues like climate change—emphasizing that the United States would once again rejoin the international climate agreement under her administration—criminal justice reform, skyrocketing pharmaceutical prices, immigration reform, and digital privacy rights. “And one last obstacle which we must overcome to move forward together. Stop the fear-mongering and stop the hate. We may come from different places. We may pray in different ways. We may look different. And love different. But all live in the same country of shared dreams,” she concluded.

Klobuchar, delivering her message next to the Mississippi river in the heart of Minneapolis, highlighted her campaign as a homegrown one. As the granddaughter of an iron ore miner, the daughter of a teacher and newspaperman, Klobuchar shared her family background and childhood to emphasize that she doesn’t come from money and her campaign won’t revolve around political machines; rather, it’ll revolve around her grit and the power from those that surround her to deliver her commitment to common good. 

Klobuchar joins the bid for the Democratic nominee alongside eight other candidates, even though numerous others are expected to launch their nomination within the next few weeks. Klobuchar is expected to start her campaign in Iowa on February 21 for a local party fundraiser, a state where one survey from December had her polling with 10 percent support in the state [1]. Alluding to the 2016 election, when Hillary Clinton seldom visited the critical state of Wisconsin, Klobuchar announced that she will begin her campaign for president in Wisconsin.