Sunday, May 31, 2015

O'Malley to challenge Clinton for candidacy - Sky News Australia

Former Maryland Governor Martin O'Malley has announced his candidacy for the US presidency.

The 52-year-old Democrat formally launched his 2016 campaign at a rally in Baltimore, where he served two terms as the city's mayor before going on to run the state.

Mr O'Malley presented himself to voters as a next-generation leader and pointed to his record as governor on issues such as gay marriage, immigration and the minimum wage.

He blasted social injustice and Wall Street excesses during his announcement speech on Saturday.

'We cannot rebuild the American Dream here at home by catering to the voices of the privileged and the powerful,' he said.

'Powerful, wealthy special interests here at home have used our government to create, in our own country, an economy that is leaving a majority of our people behind.'

O'Malley, who has aggressively courted the Democratic Party's liberal wing, is still largely unknown in a field dominated by Hillary Clinton.

He has made frequent visits to the early voting states of Iowa and New Hampshire to help raise his profile.

Mr O'Malley endorsed Mrs Clinton during her failed presidential bid against Barack Obama in 2008, but has been more critical of the former secretary of state in recent months.

'The President of the United States is not some crown to be passed between two families,' he said in a recent TV interview in direct reference to the Clinton and Bush families.

He repeated the comment to the delight of his supporters during Saturday's rally.

Mr O'Malley is the third Democrat to enter the 2016 race for the White House.

Senator Bernie Sanders of Vermont officially kicked off his campaign on Tuesday.

Former Rhode Island Governor Lincoln Chafee is expected to announce his candidacy on 3 June, expanding the Democratic field to four.

The Republican side, meanwhile, already has seen eight candidates launch bids, with several more expected to enter in the coming weeks including former Florida Governor Jeb Bush.

Among those in the hunt for the GOP nomination are Senators Rand Paul, Ted Cruz and Marco Rubio, former Arkansas Governor Mike Huckabee, retired neurosurgeon Dr Ben Carson and technology executive Carly Fiorina.

Former Senator Rick Santorum and Ex-New York Governor George Pataki launched their bids earlier this week.


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