Dem strategist says Clinton ‘absolutely’ has a role to play in 2020

Democratic strategist Jennifer Holdsworth said Friday that former Democratic presidential nominee Hillary Clinton “absolutely” will have a role in the 2020 elections and will act as a “surrogate” for whoever becomes the party’s nominee.

“She should not stay away — she absolutely has a role, she will be a surrogate for whoever the eventual nominee is,” Holdsworth told Hill.TV’s Buck Sexton and Jamal Simmons during a panel discussion on “Rising.”

Holdsworth, who is the senior vice president of issues management at MWWPR Public Affairs, emphasized that Clinton may have lost the 2016 election but she still has a lot of wisdom to offer.

“She has an absolute fount of knowledge that she’s going to give all of these candidates and tell them the pitfalls that they should watch out for, but also we have to remember this was a woman who won the popular [vote by] 3 million votes,” the Democratic strategist told HillTV.

Holdsworth added that she hopes the former secretary of State will continue to meet with Democratic hopefuls — “except” for Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.), her chief rival in the 2016 Democratic primary.

CNN reported Thursday that Clinton recently met with former Vice President Joe Biden and Sen. Amy Klobuchar (D-Minn.) to talk about the 2020 presidential election. 

The meetings were held earlier this month at Clinton’s home in Washington, D.C., and focused on Biden’s and Klobuchar’s potential White House bids.

Klobuchar’s meeting with Clinton reportedly took place shortly before the Minnesota senator announced her candidacy during an event in Minneapolis last Sunday.

Biden, meanwhile, has not made an official announcement on whether he will run, although sources close to the situation say it’s likely.

Clinton has been meeting with a range of candidates as the Democratic race gets increasingly crowded, but, like most prominent Democrats, she has yet to make an endorsement. 

— Tess Bonn

Updated at 2:14 p.m.