Michelle Obama is preparing to announce her endorsement of Joe Biden and bring her star power to his presidential campaign.
Plans are still in the works for the rollout but the former first lady could appear in an online video and send out an email fundraising plea for the former vice president, The Hill newspaper reported. Obama also is expected to work the phones to get her celebrity friends and high-dollar donors in Biden’s corner.
Any effort on her part will likely be a boost to the former vice president. But Michelle Obama is notorious for hating campaigning and would rarely make appearances on the trail for her husband let alone other Democratic candidates.
Michelle Obama is preparing to roll out her endorsement of Joe Biden, now the presumptive Democratic nominee
Michelle Obama (left), pictured with Jill (center) and Joe Biden (right) in 2008. The former first lady will soon endorse the former vice president’s 2020 bid
Michelle Obama (right) campaigned for Hillary Clinton (left) in 2016, but it wasn’t enough to help the Democratic nominee with the election over President Trump
‘We obviously think that Michelle Obama is one of the most popular and beloved figures in the party and we’d be honored to have her endorsement,’ a Biden aide told DailyMail.com.
‘We think the work she is doing registering voters is important and we know how her important her voice is,’ the person said. ‘She crosses the political aisle in ways others can’t.’
The aide said the endorsement would be ‘down the road’ and it would be an ‘incredibly powerful and influential’ moment.
The former first lady made a memorable speech at the 2016 Democratic National Convention where Hillary Clinton was nominated – famously telling Americans ‘when they go low, we go high’ – but made few appearances on the campaign trail for Clinton.
The two women didn’t appear at a rally together until October 27th of that year – less than two weeks before the election – where Obama called her ‘my girl’ and Clinton gushed Obama was ‘amazing.’ At that North Carolina event, it was Obama who got the most cheers and applause.
Michelle Obama also held solo get-out-the-vote rallies that year but it wasn’t enough to help Clinton beat Donald Trump.
This year, Obama is a part of When We All Vote – an initiative to get people to the polls this November. She had planned a voter participation rally in Detroit last month that was canceled when containment measures to combat the coronavirus were put into place.
She will host an online voter registration drive on Monday evening.
‘I’m counting on all of you to help make sure everyone in this country knows how to register and vote safely in the 2020 elections. Join me and @WhenWeAllVote this Monday night—RSVP now for the voter registration #CouchParty at http://weall.vote/couchparty,’ she tweeted on Thursday.
Obama launched the group in the 2018 election cycle with the help of celebrity friends like Tom Hanks and Lin-Manuel Miranda.
Since she left the White House, she’s also wrote her best-selling memoir ‘Becoming’ and went on a book tour that filled arenas usually only sold out by rock stars.
Michelle Obama is also reactivating her get out the vote group When We All Vote, announcing that she’ll host a ‘couch party’ on Monday
Michelle Obama (left) and Jill Biden (right) and the Biden’s dog Champ are photographed as part of their Joining Forces initiative in 2012, when their husbands were still in the White House
The two couples at an event in Iowa City, Iowa during their re-election bid in 2012
The timing of her Biden endorsement is yet to be determined.
She was close to both Joe and Jill Biden when President Barack Obama was in office.
Michelle Obama and Jill Biden worked together to support military spouses and families as part of their Joining Forces campaign.
And Obama remains close to Kathleen Biden, the former wife of Hunter Biden. The two women have been workout buddies for years. Additionally, the children of both – Maisy, Finnegan, and Naomi Biden and Malia and Sasha Obama – all attended Sidwell Friends, the posh Washington D.C. private school that counts Chelsea Clinton as one of its alumni.
Her endorsement of Joe Biden would follow former President Obama’s blessing. He endorsed Biden on Tuesday. Other Democrats have also lined up behind Biden as the nominee. Bernie Sanders ended his primary bid on Monday to endorse Biden. Elizabeth Warren endorsed him on Wednesday.
‘This week was President Obama’s moment to enter the campaign. Of course, Mrs. Obama supports Joe Biden and we will keep you posted on her plans,’ an Obama aide told The Hill.
But her popularity could bring an even greater boost to Biden than the former president could give.
‘We know what pretty much everyone in America does: Michelle Obama is probably the most beloved member of the Democratic party and her support is a big deal,’ a Biden aide told the newspaper. ‘Any future announcement would reflect the incredible impact her voice has.’