New Hampshire Lawmaker Switches Endorsement from Warren to Klobuchar over Electability

Democratic presidential candidate U.S. Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-MA) participates in a Pres
Bill Pugliano/Getty Images
Hannah Knudsen

New Hampshire state lawmaker Rep. Michael Pedersen switched his endorsement from Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-MA) to Sen. Amy Klobuchar (D-MN) after a contentious political week in the Democrat 2020 race, NBC News reported on Thursday.

Pedersen endorsed Warren in November, signing an open letter featuring 50 state legislators.

“Elizabeth Warren is running for president to reform our government so it works for everyone,” the letter stated.

“It’s because of this that we enthusiastically support her run for the White House, and will be doing everything we can to ensure she is elected our next President,” it added.

However, Pedersen withdrew his support and switched to Klobuchar due to concerns over Warren’s electability.

“I like both candidates a lot, and am friends with staff on both teams, however I think that Sen. Klobuchar is more electable across the country than Sen. Warren,” Pedersen said, according to NBC News.

“She has a proven track record of winning in Trump country. And Sen. Warren has a proven track record of winning in liberal northeast,” he continued, noting that his support for Klobuchar solidified after Tuesday’s debate in Iowa.

“After the debate, I saw everybody pairing up — Sen. Warren and Sanders competition against one another, and then everyone else,” he told the outlet.

“I just think those two as a team, Sanders and Warren, they don’t appeal widely across the nation as Sen. Klobuchar,” he added.

The most recent Emerson College Poll, released following the Democrat debate, showed Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-VT) maintaining a solid lead in the Granite State, with 23 percent support. Pete Buttigieg (D) followed with 18 percent support, and Warren tied with Biden for third place with 14 percent support each. Klobuchar saw the most significant jump, growing from two percent to ten percent, the poll showed.

Emerson College Polling Director Spencer Kimball added that there “was not much movement among the top four candidates in the last month, but Senator Amy Klobuchar jumped 8 points and is a competitor in New Hampshire.”

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