LOS ANGELES — Minnesota Sen. Amy Klobuchar seems to be boosting her public profile as speculation continue swirl of a potential 2020 run for president.
As Seema Mehta of the Los Angeles Times reported, Klobuchar is headed to Hollywood for a fundraiser for her re-election campaign for Senate. Andy Spahn will host the fundraiser at his home in Brentwood, California where Hollywood elites such as Star Wars director J.J. Abrams have signed on as hosts. Those attending have been asked to donate up to $5,400 to Klobuchar’s campaign.
While this is Klobuchar’s first known fundraiser with Hollywood elites, she has been traveling around to big presidential primary states.
As reported by Alpha News, Klobuchar headlined a local Democratic fundraiser in Iowa in May sparking rumors about a potential presidential bid. Klobuchar will be headed back to Iowa on August 31, where she will speak at Iowa State University.
While Klobuchar is a household name in Minnesota and Iowa, she faces the challenge of being virtually unknown in the remaining 48 states.
A POLITICO poll from June shows that the majority of the 1,990 individuals polled had never heard of Klobuchar.
In fact, Klobuchar’s colleague and Minnesota Junior Sen. Al Franken has more name recognition than Klobuchar.
“Among the senators who have been mentioned as potential candidates, only Sen. Al Franken (D-Minn.) — the former “Saturday Night Live” writer and performer — has name identification that exceeds 70 percent,” POLITCO’s Steven Shepard writes.
After the election of President Donald Trump, Klobchar seems to quietly be building her public profile. As Alpha News reported, Klobuchar is actively gaining more attention from mainstream media, doing interviews with CNN, MSNBC, FOX, ABC, and ESPN.
Prior to the election, Klobuchar was neither seen or heard outside of Minnesota media. Now, on any given week, Klobuchar can be seen giving multiple interviews with major news networks, but seemingly prefers MSNBC, which the Washington Post identified to be left-leaning in 2014.
Klobuchar has in part fueled the fodder of her potential presidential run, often remaining coy in her answers. As Alpha News wrote back in April, “ Whatever Klobuchar’s political future holds in the next few years, one thing is for certain – her decision to headline a spring fundraiser for Iowa Democrats in Polk County on May 7 will increase the hype around a potential Presidential campaign in 2020.”
The sentiments hold true today. Klobuchar’s fundraiser with Hollywood royalty and her speeches in Iowa will continue to garner her national attention as announcements for a 2020 presidential bid grow closer.
Preya Samsundar
Preya Samsundar was born and raised in Minneapolis, MN. She graduated from the University of Minnesota - Twin Cities this Spring with a B.A. in Political Science and Sociology, with a minor in Strategic Communications. Preya has previously worked on several State Campaign Races.
