Elizabeth Warren Makes 2020 Presidential Bid Official

Democratic Sen. Elizabeth Warren made her run for the 2020 presidency official Saturday in Lawrence.

In her presidential kickoff speech at a mill site where many immigrant factory workers went on strike about a century ago, she pledged her campaign will "build an American that works for everyone," putting emphasis on combating economic inequality in the U.S.

Despite the sub-freezing temperature, scores of people gathered to hear a fired-up Warren outline her agenda if elected as America’s first woman president.

Warren told the crowd, "It won't be enough to just undo the terrible acts of this administration. We can't afford to just tinker around the edges — a tax credit here, a regulation there. Our fight is for big, structural change. This is the fight of our lives."

She continued, "The fight to build an America where dreams are possible, an America that works for everyone. I am in that fight all the way. And that is why I stand here today: to declare that I am a candidate for president of the United States of America."

State and local political leaders addressed the crowd, including Sen. Ed Markey and Rep. Lori Trahan. Rep. Joe Kennedy III introduced Warren to the stage.

All three politicians endorsed her bid for the Democratic presidential nomination.

Warren will be holding events in several other early voting states on Saturday and Sunday, including New Hampshire and Iowa.

In days leading up to her announcement, The Washington Post reported that Warren listed her race as "American Indian" on a State Bar of Texas registration card in 1986.

"I can’t go back," Warren told the Post in response to their report. "But I am sorry for furthering confusion on tribal sovereignty and tribal citizenship and harm that resulted."

Nowhere in her lengthy speech in which she outlined her three goals for president — ending corruption in politics, “strengthening our democracy” and achieving racial economic equity — did she address the controversy.

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But that’s just it, said Kathleen O’Conner of Marlborough, that was in the past.

“When has the [Trump] White House apologized for anything? There is no comparison,” she said. “Making fun of the disabled, saying the hatred comments, and the list goes on and on and on. How many lies per minute does he say? There's no comparison.”

O’Connor, like many supporters, says she feels Warren can win despite a crowded Democratic field and increased scrutiny of Warren’s past.

During her speech, Warren did touch on struggles indigenous Americans have endured, a long with other marginalized groups.

“We can’t be blind to the fact that the rules in our country have been rigged against other people for a long time,” Warren said. “Women, LGBTQ Americans, Latinos, Native Americans, immigrants, people with disabilities — and we need to call it out."