In what is now the biggest endorsement in Nevada before the 2020 presidential election, Clark County Commissioner Tick Segerblom has announced his support for Vermont Democrat Bernie Sanders.

“No other candidate has demonstrated the same consistency and courage to fight the powerful forces that have deepened inequality in the United States,” Segerblom said in an endorsement statement released Tuesday. “This moment calls for a president who will unabashedly defend the rights of every worker in America, save our planet from climate catastrophe and address the profiteering and institutional racism that exists within the American criminal justice system."

A former assemblyman and state senator based in Southern Nevada, Segerblom has pushed for progressive causes aligning with Sanders – including $15 minimum wage, marijuana legalization and criminal justice reform.

A longtime independent senator from Vermont, Sanders thanked Segerblom for his support Tuesday.

A nationwide USA TODAY/Suffolk University Poll found a sharply divided country that views next year’s presidential campaign as a sobering test of the fundamental values of the United States.

A majority of those on both sides called the election the most important of their lifetimes.

In the crowded Democratic field, former Vice President Joe Biden retained a wide lead, at 32%, up 2 percentage points from the USA TODAY/Suffolk poll taken in June.

Massachusetts Sen. Elizabeth Warren moved up 4 points to second place, at 14%, and Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders dropped 3 points, now at third place with 12%.