Ex-Massachusetts Gov. Patrick announces Dem presidential bid

He has close ties to Obama and his network of advisers.

WASHINGTON — Former Massachusetts Gov. Deval Patrick announced Thursday he is running for president, making a late entry into the Democratic race less than three months before primary voting begins.

In an announcement video, Patrick highlighted his poverty-stricken childhood on Chicago’s South Side, saying he’s running for the “people who feel left out and left back.”

As the first in his family to go to college and law school, Patrick said, “I’ve had a chance to live my American Dream.” But over the years, the “path to that dream” has closed off for others, he said, as government and economy have been “letting us down.”

He later traveled to New Hampshire to file paperwork to compete in the nation’s first presidential primary in February.

Patrick made history as the first black governor of Massachusetts and has close ties to former President Barack Obama and his network of political advisers. But he faces significant fundraising and organizational hurdles this late in the race.

His announcement comes as some Democrats worry about the strength of the party’s current field of contenders. Another Democrat, former New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg, is also weighing a last-minute bid for the party’s nomination.

Patrick was asked on CBS if he supports the “Medicare for All” health care plan, which is pushed by Sanders and would replace jobbased and individual private health insurance with a government-run plan that guarantees coverage for all with no premiums or deductibles and only minimal copays for certain services.

“No, not in the terms we’ve been talking about,” Patrick said. “I do support a public option, and if Medicare is that public option, I think it’s a great idea.”

Patrick also acknowledged the challenges posed by his late entry in such a big field of candidates.

“When I was thinking about it many months ago, one of the questions was: How do you break though in a field this large and this talented without being a celebrity or sensationalist? And I’m none of those things,” Patrick said on “CBS This Morning.”

His announcement comes as some Democrats worry about the strength of the party’s current field of contenders.