Julian Castro Takes a Major Step Toward Likely 2020 Run

Democratic politician Julián Castro unveiled a presidential exploratory committee on Wednesday, his first major step toward a likely 2020 White House run.

The 44-year-old former mayor of San Antonio, who also served as Obama’s secretary of housing and urban development, revealed a new website featuring a photograph of a beaming Castro with text declaring: “I’m exploring a candidacy for President in 2020.”

Castro also released a biographical video with a straight-to-camera appeal to voters regarding his personal and family background.

“No matter where we’re from, we’re united by the same daily needs—a good job, a good education for our kids, good health care, an affordable place to live,” Castro said in the video. “The need to be acknowledged for our contributions, not for our gender or who we love. We all hope our children have clean air to breathe and clean water to drink. We all hope they can worry about their studies, not their safety.”

The formation of his exploratory committee was first reported by the Associated Press, who also interviewed Castro. In that conversation, he said of a potential run: “I know where I’m leaning, for sure.”

Castro additionally promised to make an announcement within a month, for now leap-frogging a host of other likely candidates who have yet to officially pull the trigger on even preliminary steps like forming an exploratory committee.

“Americans are ready to climb out of this darkness. We’re ready to keep our promises. And we’re not going to wait—we’re going to work,” Castro said in the video.

“That’s why I am exploring a candidacy for president of the United States in 2020. I’ll be talking with folks over the next several weeks and will make an announcement about my plans on January 12, 2019 here in Texas.”