As Senator Jon Ossoff rallied supporters in Morrow, Georgia, Democrats began to chant “Yes we can.” Ironically, it came the day that Dolores Huerta, the United Farmworkers organizer who popularized the Spanish version of “Si se puede,” died. But to add another layer, Barack Obama, who adopted the slogan in his 2008 presidential campaign, was in the building.
When Ossoff introduced Obama, the first-term Georgia senator running for reelection nicked another line from Obama, asking the crowd if they were “fired up” and if they were “ready to go.” Obama seemed to size up the young buck, calling him the common-sense choice in the race.
“It’s not because he looks like a Kennedy, all handsome in the videos,” Obama said, before citing how Ossoff learned from the late civil rights activist, Rep. John Lewis, for whom Ossoff interned. “It’s because he learned from his mentor and my mentor – one of the greats. John Lewis – what it means to stir up some good trouble. That’s what he’s been doing on your behalf.”
It was about as clear of a stamp of approval the former president could give for someone whose cadence and diction has been compared to Obama’s.
Polls show Ossoff – who nine years ago launched a longshot bid for Congress in the suburbs of Atlanta before he flipped a Senate seat in a 2021 runoff race – comfortably leading against his Republican opponent, far-right Rep. Mike Collins. His campaign has also made it a point to clip his speeches and post them on social media, helping make him a viral sensation. His relative youth and good looks have led some liberal women to salivate over him, as The 19th reported.
So naturally, as a young senator who has a history of winning in a swing state, Democrats, pundits, and political prognosticators think he might be plotting his own run for the White House soon.
In Georgia, some Democratic voters told Zeteo they were open to the idea of Ossoff running for president.