Oct. 16 (UPI) -- Rep. Ilhan Omar has endorsed Sen. Bernie Sanders for the Democratic presidential nomination to go up against President Donald Trump in next year's election, according to his campaign.
In a statement Tuesday, Omar, D-Minn., said she is backing Sanders as he is "leading a working-class movement to defeat Donald Trump that transcends generation, ethnicity and geography."
She said the Vermont senator is in support of ending student debt, making school lunch universal, creating humane immigration policy and ending the country's "forever" wars while prioritizing human rights above foreign policy.
"And it's why I believe Bernie Sanders is the best candidate to take on Donald Trump in 2020," she said.
Sanders, 78, called Omar, 38, a leader of "strength and courage."
"She will not back down from a fight with billionaires and the world's most powerful corporations to transform our country so it works for all of us," he said in a statement. "I'm proud of what we've done in Congress, and together we will build a multiracial working-class coalition to win the White House."
It is also expected that Sanders will receive the endorsement of Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-N.Y., this Saturday where she is billed to be joining him for a campaign rally in Queens, New York.
Earlier Tuesday, his campaign said he would have a special guest at the event and during the debate, Sanders teased, "We're going to have a special guest at that event, and we are going to be mounting a vigorous campaign all over this country."
The event is being advertised as his official return to the campaign trail after undergoing surgery following a heart attack early this month.
Omar and Ocasio-Cortez, 30, are two rising politicians within the Democratic Party who have received much attention for being members of a group of four Congressional women of color Trump has attacked and called "the squad."
