How Klobuchar's abrupt drop out, endorsement is part of a bigger Democratic strategy

A look at political strategy amid Democratic party shakeup

FOX 9's Maury Glover takes a look at how political strategies could play out after the most recent Democratic party shakeups.

(FOX 9) - Just hours after dropping out of the race, Sen. Amy Klobuchar flew to Texas and endorsed Joe Biden.

When Klobuchar decided to end her run for the presidency and endorse the former Vice President, she helped narrow the field of Democratic contenders. Some are wondering, however, why she dropped out with voters set to take to the polls Super Tuesday.

“We usually see the winnowing right after Super Tuesday,” said University of Minnesota Political Science Professor Katheryn Pearson. “That is what is interesting about this dynamic. Shows the strategizing going on to establish Joe Biden as the moderate candidate to Bernie Sanders.”

Pearson says even though Klobuchar had a slight lead over Bernie Sanders in Minnesota, losing her home state would have been politically damaging.

Pearson also says some Democrats believe Sanders is too liberal to beat Donald Trump in November, so there is pressure on candidates like Klobuchar and Pete Buttigieg to help establish a clear moderate alternative in Biden.

“So, I think this is an effort by Klobuchar and Buttigieg, who are in that camp, that they’ve said very clearly, Democrats should elect a moderate to run against President Trump. So, this is an effort to make that moderate Joe Biden,” Pearson said.

Former rivals teaming up is nothing new to the political process. Pearson says it goes back as far as President Abraham Lincoln’s cabinet.

She says it is the opposite of what Republicans did in the last presidential election when several candidates battled it out instead of uniting behind a single candidate to challenge Donald Trump for the party nomination.

“Who knows? Maybe, if they had gotten together before Super Tuesday, Republicans might have had a different outcome. We’ll never know,” Pearson said.

Pearson says where Klobuchar’s voters will go now depends on why they support her. If they like her politics, they may vote for Biden. If they like her because she’s a woman, they could vote for Elizabeth Warren. Mike Bloomberg also remains a wildcard in the race.