Durbin endorses Biden: He ‘can start to heal the wounds of this divided nation’

Sen. Dick Durbin (Ill.), the No. 2 Senate Democrat, has endorsed Joe Biden as the former vice president continues to rack up support from establishment Democrats for his White House bid.

Durbin’s endorsement comes ahead of Illinois’s primary on March 17, when 155 pledged delegates will be up for grabs. Durbin, who joined Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot (D) in backing Biden, said the former vice president would be able to unite the country and relate to issues facing average Americans. 

“America needs a President who can start to heal the wounds of this divided nation. Joe Biden will be that President,” Durbin said in a statement.

“America needs a President who understands that most Americans worry more about the supermarket than the stock market. That family struggling paycheck to paycheck needs a leader who remembers them every day,” he added. “America needs a President who will expand the protections of the ACA so every family, every person has access to affordable, quality health care. Joe Biden will be that President.”

Durbin, who has heaped praise on Biden in the past and worked with him for years in the Senate, is the latest in a string of Illinois lawmakers who have come out in support of him following his string of victories in 10 of 14 Super Tuesday states.

Illinois Democratic Sen. Tammy Duckworth and Reps. Mike Quigley, Robin Kelly and Bill Foster all came out this week to endorse Biden, joining Reps. Brad Schneider and Danny Davis who had previously backed his White House bid.

Both Biden and Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) are expected to heavily contest the primary in Illinois, one of four states holding nominating contests on March 17. The Land of Lincoln will have the second-highest delegate haul of the day behind Florida. 

A Southern Illinois University poll released last month showed Sanders with a 5-point lead in the state, though the survey was conducted before Biden’s winning spree from South Carolina and Super Tuesday.