Former Virginia Senator Jim Webb on
Thursday announced his bid for the White House.
Webb made his announcement in a
2,000-word Facebook post.
“After many months of thought,
deliberation and discussion, I have decided to seek the office of the
Presidency of the United States,” Webb wrote.
He said that he had decided to run
because “our country needs a fresh approach to solving the problems
that confront us and too often unnecessarily divide us. … And at
the same time our fellow Americans need proven, experienced
leadership that can be trusted to move us forward from a new
President's first days in office.”
Webb is the fifth candidate seeking the
Democratic nomination. Former Secretary of State Hillary Rodham
Clinton is considered the race's frontrunner. Also in the race are
Vermont Senator Bernie Sanders, former Maryland Governor Martin
O'Malley and former Rhode Island Governor Lincoln Chafee. All of Webb's
rivals support marriage equality.
While Webb is generally supportive of
LGBT rights, he has yet to officially change his stance favoring
civil unions, not marriage, for gay and lesbian couples. During a
2014 appearance on Meet the
Press, Webb said that the debate “has been a good thing
for the country.”