U.S. Rep. Abby Finkenauer, D-Iowa, endorsed former Vice President Joe Biden on Thursday. She is the first of Iowa’s members of Congress to make a presidential endorsement.
The endorsement was announced at the start of a five day swing in Iowa for Biden that will take him to ten different counties.
“I was raised in a small town in rural Iowa, where my family instilled in me the importance of hard work, caring for others, and most importantly the value of public service. I take those values with me every day in Washington, where I have made improving the lives of Iowa’s working families my top priority,” she said in a released statement.
“We need a President who reflects those same values and will make America’s working families their top priority. Joe Biden’s character, record, and commitment to rebuilding the backbone of the country — the middle class — is what Iowa and this country needs. Across the country, and especially in Iowa, too many families are being left behind by our current president. It’s time we have leadership in the White House who believes in the value of not only uniting a divided Congress, but uniting our country through common sense, dignity, and respect,” Finkenauer added.
This endorsement is not a surprise. Finkenauer worked on Biden’s 2008 campaign. He also traveled to Cedar Rapids to campaign for Finkenauer’s congressional campaign in 2018.
Biden has received 185 endorsements of state representatives, mayors, and city council members. He was also endorsed by former Secretary of Agriculture and Governor of Iowa Tom Vilsack and his wife Christie Vilsack.
While endorsements don’t necessarily push a candidate over the finish line, they do single in Biden’s case that he has strong establishment support.
