CLEVELAND — A 13th member of Congress is endorsing Nina Turner’s campaign to represent Ohio’s 11th Congressional District.

What You Need To Know

  • California Rep. Ted Lieu, a northeast Ohio native, is backing Nina Turner in the OH-11 special election

  • Lieu is the 13th member of Congress to endorse Turner’s campaign

  • The endorsement comes just days after several members of the Congressional Black Caucus attended a D.C. fundraiser for rival Shontel Brown

  • The OH-11 special election primary is on Aug. 3

Rep. Ted Lieu, D-California, who grew up in northeast Ohio, announced Wednesday he was backing Turner to fill the seat left vacant earlier this year by Secretary of Housing and Urban Development Marcia Fudge.

“[Turner] came from working class roots,” Lieu told Spectrum News in an exclusive interview. "Her mom was a nurse's aide. Her dad was a truck driver, and like me, she started working at a very young age, age of 14, to keep her family afloat.”

Lieu added, “And so she understood the hardships of inequality, of being poor. And that's something she's going to carry with her in Congress. And we need more voices like those of Nina Turner’s.”

Lieu’s endorsement comes as the Aug. 3 primary for the OH-11 special election quickly approaches.

“I am so very grateful for my fellow greater Clevelander’s endorsement,” Turner said in a statement to Spectrum News. “Representative Lieu has been on the front lines fighting for justice and protecting our Democracy against one of the most divisive administrations in our history. I’m ready to stand alongside him and push America forward in Congress.” 

Turner leads the crowded Democratic field in fundraising and polling, but rival Shontel Brown has been trying to build her own bench of supporters already in Congress.

Four members of the U.S. House, including Columbus-area Rep. Joyce Beatty, have endorsed Brown.

Punchbowl News reported last week that several members of the influential Congressional Black Caucus, which Beatty chairs, attended a Washington, D.C. fundraiser for Brown. Beatty’s name was not listed on the invitation.

Brown has long considered Fudge, who represented the 11th District for over a decade and is a former CBC chair, a mentor, though Fudge has not formally weighed in on the race because of her current job in the Biden administration.

Lieu is the thirteenth member of Congress to endorse Turner’s bid to represent the 11th Congressional District. Her other supporters include Senator Bernie Sanders of Vermont and Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez of New York.

The California congressman cited Turner’s experience on the national stage as a surrogate for Sanders’ presidential campaign, her time as a state senator in Ohio, and her tenure as a council member in Cleveland as reasons she is qualified.

“She can hit Congress without having to spend a lot of time learning the ropes,” Lieu said. “She can hit the ground running.”

Thirteen Democrats and two Republicans will be on the ballot for the Aug. 3 primary.

The 11th District is drawn to heavily favor Democrats, so the winner of the primary is all but guaranteed to win the seat.