Florida Democrat Andrew Gillum meets with Obama amid 2020 speculation

CNN/Stylemagazine.com Newswire | 12/5/2018, 12:15 p.m.
Andrew Gillum met with former President Barack Obama in Washington on Tuesday, two sources familiar with the matter tell CNN, …
Andrew Gillum met with former President Barack Obama in Washington on Tuesday, two sources familiar with the matter tell CNN, amid ongoing speculation that the former Democratic nominee for Florida governor might be considering a potential 2020 presidential bid.

By Rebecca Buck, CNN

(CNN) -- Andrew Gillum met with former President Barack Obama in Washington on Tuesday, two sources familiar with the matter tell CNN, amid ongoing speculation that the former Democratic nominee for Florida governor might be considering a potential 2020 presidential bid.

It is unclear what was discussed at the meeting between Obama and Gillum, who has been talked about as a possible 2020 presidential contender and hasn't ruled out a bid.

A spokesperson for Obama declined to comment. The former president supported Gillum in his failed bid to become Florida's first African-American governor.

Gillum was in Washington to speak at the Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights. There, he punted on the question of running for president in 2020, saying, "I plan on being married to my wife. That is all I am planning."

Gillum added, "What I am committed to doing between now and 2020 is doing everything I can to make the state of Florida available and winnable for the democratic nominee for president."

Although he lost narrowly in last month's election to Ron DeSantis, a pro-Trump Republican and former member of Congress, Gillum became a national Democratic celebrity in the process — raising the question of what his next steps will be.

Another Democrat who became a national sensation during the midterms but ultimately fell short, Texas Democrat Beto O'Rourke, is also taking a look at a possible presidential bid. The Washington Post reported that O'Rourke met last month with Obama.

Obama has met in recent months with a lengthy roster of possible 2020 Democratic contenders, including Sens. Elizabeth Warren and Cory Booker, and his former Vice President, Joe Biden.

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