Biden Gets Support From 3 Swing-State Democrats

Democratic presidential candidate former Vice President Joe Biden visits a campaign field office in in Waterloo, Iowa on Jan. 4, 2020. Patrick Semansky/AP Photo

Presidential candidate Joe Biden got support from three swing-state members of Congress, who touted Biden’s decades of experience in Congress and as vice president.

Reps. Elaine Luria (D-Va.), Chrissy Houlahan (D-Penn.), and Conor Lamb (D-Penn.) said they’re endorsing Biden, 77, for president.

All three served in the military and mentioned Biden’s foreign policy experience, which he has repeatedly referred to while making his case for the nomination.

“Our country needs a steady hand, someone who can help heal the country, an experienced and proven leader who can build teams with deep expertise and work across the aisle,” Houlahan, who served in the Air Force, said in a statement released over the weekend by Biden’s campaign.

“Pennsylvania is not red or blue but a purple place which our next President needs to carry to win,” she said.

Luria, who represents a district that President Donald Trump won in 2016, added, “Joe Biden is ‘battle-tested’ on the world stage, in Congress, and in the White House. He will defeat Donald Trump and win in tough districts like mine.”

Rep. Chrissy Houlahan (D-Penn.) prepares to be interviewed on television just outside the House Chamber at the U.S. Capitol in Washington on Dec. 17, 2019. Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images

Conor Lamb, a Democratic congressional candidate for Pennsylvania's 18th district, speaks to reporters in a March 2018 file photograph. Drew Angerer/Getty Images

Lamb was also elected in a district that went for Trump in 2016.

The three endorsements follow one by Rep. Abby Finkenauer (D-Iowa), who endorsed Biden last week.

Most congressional Democrats haven’t endorsed a candidate but out of those who have, many have announced support for Biden. Biden leads the pack with 52 endorsements from “noteworthy“ Democrats, followed by Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) and Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.).

Rep. Matt Cartwright (D-Penn.) and Sen. Bob Casey (D-Penn.) previously announced their support for the former vice president, who grew up in Scranton, Pennsylvania.

Biden has spent recent days hammering President Donald Trump over the U.S. military’s air strike in Iraq, which took out Iranian General Qassem Soleimani. Every Democratic presidential contender criticized the decision.

Warren also got a big endorsement on Jan. 6, earning the support of Julian Castro, the former Obama administration cabinet secretary who recently announced the end of his own 2020 campaign.

“There’s one candidate I see who will make sure that no matter where you live in America or where you family came from in the world—you have a path to opportunity,” he said in a video that showed him meeting Warren.