HERE WE GO

West Virginia Military Veteran Richard Ojeda Announces 2020 Presidential Bid

Vet voted for Trump—but now he’s planning a blue-collar Democratic campaign against him.

Military veteran and West Virginia State Senator Richard Ojeda announced Monday that he’s running for president in the 2020 election. The senator, who just recently lost a congressional bid to Republican Carol Miller in the state’s 3rd District, first gained national attention for his campaign kick-off video, in which he included his personal cellphone number and pledged to answer it. After he was elected as a state senator, Ojeda pushed for the legalization of medical marijuana and supported local unions. In an interview published Sunday, the former Army paratrooper told The Intercept that he voted for Donald Trump in 2016 because of Hillary Clinton’s ties to the establishment, but has always considered himself a Democrat. “The reason why the Democratic Party fell from grace is because they become nothing more than elitist, that was it. Goldman Sachs, that’s who they were,” he said. “The Democratic Party is supposed to be the party that fights for the working class and that’s exactly what I do.” He added that “The filthy rich convinced the dirt poor the filthy rich are the ones who care. We need someone in Washington, D.C. who’s going to be a voice for these people.”