Former 2020 Candidate Julián Castro Endorses Elizabeth Warren

In a video stressing equal rights, former presidential candidate Julian Castro endorsed onetime opponent Elizabeth Warren.

"There's one candidate I see who is unafraid to fight like hell to make sure America's promise will be there for everyone," Castro said in a campaign video.

The spot shows Castro visiting with Warren to discuss his prior campaign and what he liked about hers while both sought the Democratic nomination.

Warren in the video stressed the need for social change and an evolution in values.

"A country that elects someone like Donald Trump is a country that's already in serious trouble," she said. "And now, the possibility for change, that door has opened a crack."

Both Castro and Warren touted strong records on LGBTQ issues. Castro ended his campaign earlier this month, after campaigning on issues like equal access to health care for all Americans, including access to abortion for transgender Americans. At a forum on LGBTQ issues in September the former Housing and Urban Development secretary denounced anti-trans comments made by his successor, Ben Carson, and called for the Trump appointee's resignation.

Warren, for her part, entered the Democratic field a prominent LGBTQ rights champion. The senator earned a 100 percent rating from the Human Rights Campaign for her first term in office, where she cosponsored the Equality Act and opposed many of Trump's judicial nominees with anti-LGBTQ records.

Her support for marriage equality predated President Barack Obama's "evolution" on the issue, as she campaigned on the message in 2011 while the most recent Democratic president only took up the cause in 2012.

Warren has emerged as a top-tier candidate in a crowded Democratic field. The RealClearPolitics polling index shows her polling on average with more than 14 percent support, behind former Vice President Joe Biden (29 percent) and Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders (20 percent) and ahead of out South Bend, Ind., Mayor Pete Buttigieg (8 percent).