Former U.S. Secretary of State Madeleine Albright endorsed Kentucky Secretary of State Alison Lundergan Grimes (D) on Tuesday in her bid for the U.S. Senate.
“Alison is one of the brightest young leaders in America, and I am proud to stand with Alison in her campaign. Her detailed plan to build the middle class will make our country stronger at home and abroad,” Albright said in a statement posted on Grimes' campaign website.
“We need more leaders who will go to Washington and put the American people before partisan politics. I know that Alison will be one of those leaders,” she added.
Grimes tweeted a picture on Tuesday of herself with Albright:
Grimes also touted the endorsement in a Tuesday HuffPost blog post she penned celebrating Women's Equality Day:
Former Secretary of State Madeleine Albright was among those who paved the way for women in government as our nation's first female Secretary of State, and I am proud to accept her endorsement for my U.S. Senate candidacy on this important day.
Secretary Albright broke glass ceilings, both as Secretary of State and as U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations under the Clinton administration. Secretary Albright's got grit. In a career field dominated by men, she overcame many hurdles to succeed -- not just professionally, but also as a mother to two girls. I'm elated and humbled to have her in my corner.
This latest endorsement further aligns Grimes with the administration of former President Bill Clinton, who has campaigned for Grimes in Kentucky. Albright served as U.S. ambassador to the United Nations during Clinton's first term, and as U.S. secretary of state during his second term.
When Clinton campaigned with Grimes in August, she referred to herself as a "Clinton Democrat."
Her father, Jerry Lundergan, has been friends with Clinton since the 1980s, and worked on then-Sen. Hillary Clinton's (D-N.Y.) 2008 presidential campaign. He also served stints as head of the Kentucky Democratic Party.
Grimes has tried, however, to distance herself from President Barack Obama, especially on the issue of coal regulations.
Her opponent, Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.), is being supported by former U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, who served in former President George W. Bush's administration.
HuffPost Pollster has Grimes trailing McConnell narrowly in the November general election:
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