Standing in minus 8 deg C on the banks of the Mississippi River, with the microphone in front of her encrusted with snow, 58-year-old Minnesota Senator Amy Klobuchar on Sunday threw her hat into the ring for the 2020 presidential election in an increasingly crowded field of Democrats.

That field includes Senators Cory Booker, Bernie Sanders, Kirsten Gillibrand and Tulsi Gabbard. Former United States vice-president Joe Biden, while not saying outright that he will run, has been speaking in private team meetings as if he is going to, a source said. Pundits said his age, however, may be against him; he will be 78 next year.