This article has been updated from an earlier version to reflect that Nina Turner has filed paperwork to run for Congress.
Nina Turner, the former co-chairwoman of the Bernie Sanders campaign, filed paperwork to make another run for Congress as President-elect Joe Biden selected Ohio Rep. Marcia Fudge for secretary of the Department of Housing and Urban Development.
Fudge’s selection frees up her seat in Congress. Tuner, a former state senator from Ohio, appeared willing to grab it in the weeks leading up to the nomination, Politico reported.
“I have encouraged her to run if the seat is open as that is her congressional district and she would have the immediate support of the national Bernie movement,” said Rep. Ro Khanna (D-Calif.), a fellow former Sanders campaign co-chairman. “She’d be a fantastic ally for the movement in Congress.”
Turner filed paperwork with the Federal Election Commission (FEC) on Wednesday for a committee named “Nina Turner for US,” local NBC affiliate WKYC reported.
She is expected to formally announce a bid soon for the seat held by Fudge (D-Ohio), The Hill reported.
Pressed earlier on whether she was thinking of a run, Turner said, “Well, there’s been an outcry for me to at least consider it. You know, I’m a public servant through and through, but I’m just going to leave it there for now.”
Fudge was selected by Biden to lead the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), The Hill reported. The Ohio congresswoman was previously floated as a potential head of Agriculture.
Turner won’t be alone if she runs for Fudge’s seat. There are at least six other potential candidates who could enter the Ohio race, according to Cleveland.com.
Known for her anti-Swamp stance, Turner took part in a special convention for progressives over the summer. At the convention she debated with Prof. Cornel West and self-help author-turned-presidential hopeful Marianne Williamson whether to break away from the swamp-laden DNC and form a new party.
Turner, 53, represented the Cleveland area as a state senator from 2008 to 2014. Prior to that, she served on the Cleveland city council. She considered running for the House seat in 2008 when it was last open, but decided to campaign for Senate instead, Politico reported.
Turner was urged by progressive activists, aides and even elected officials to go for the Ohio congressional seat if it should open up.
Progressive Rep.-elect Cori Bush (D-Mo.), a former Sanders surrogate herself, tweeted Sunday in support of a potential Turner campaign, saying it “would be a dream to work alongside her in Congress.”
Others, however, gave the idea the thumbs down on Twitter.
One person tweeted, “Hell No, she worked against @JoeBiden. It’s like saying to somebody, ‘You have a bowl of shit in front of you, and all you’ve got to do is eat half of it instead of the whole thing.’ It’s still shit.”
Another weighed in with, “Naw Sis, we got enough crazy in Congress.”
The domain NinaTurnerforCongress.com was purchased on Nov. 24 by someone in Ohio, according to GoDaddy’s WHOIS database. Turner told Politico that she did not buy it and she doesn’t know who did.
Other insiders say Turner may be considering a presidential bid as well. She has said she is thinking about running for president in 2024. A seat in Congress could be a great springboard to the White House.
Listen to GHOGH with Jamarlin Martin | Episode 73: Jamarlin Martin Jamarlin makes the case for why this is a multi-factor rebellion vs. just protests about George Floyd. He discusses the Democratic Party’s sneaky relationship with the police in cities and states under Dem control, and why Joe Biden is a cop and the Steve Jobs of mass incarceration.
Ohio could be an easy win for Turner.
The district is decidedly blue. Fudge won with 80 percent of the vote in 2020 and 82 percent in 2018, Tyler Morning Telegraph reported.
Turner was an Ohio State Senator from 2008 until 2014 and a Cleveland City Councillor from 2006 to 2008.
On her website, Turner describes herself as a “hell-raising humanitarian” for the marginalized. “For those who believe in ‘the America’ that was promised, Nina Turner is the speaker and activist that’ll motivate people to take action on the needs of the many and not the few,” her site proclaims.
