Jeff Burlew

Democrat senior writer

U.S. Rep. Gwen Graham is supporting Hillary Clinton for president, saying she has the “empathy, experience, intelligence and desire” to move the country forward.

Graham, one of 32 Democratic superdelegates in Florida, announced her endorsement after casting her ballot for Clinton during early voting at the Leon County Courthouse.

“We’ve got to want to work together to make sure that we deal with the issues that our country is facing, and I know that Secretary Clinton is the one to be able to do that.”

Graham, asked about the GOP primary, called it a “circus.”

“I find it to be appalling and an embarrassment,” she said. “You’re campaigning to be the leader of the greatest country in the world. And we’ve turned this into a juvenile mudslinging. And I’m using that word ‘mudslinging’ as a nicer term for some of the other things that have gone on.”

Graham said she bumped into Clinton’s challenger, Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders, recently at Reagan National Airport.

“He’s very sweet,” she said. “I like Sen. Sanders very much. I believe from my very core that Secretary Clinton has the combination of qualities we need at this moment in our country’s history more than ever.”

Early voting began Saturday in Leon County and runs through Saturday, ahead of Florida’s March 15 presidential primary. Graham urged people to get out and vote.

“Every election is important,” she said. “But I think we can all recognize this one has become critical to our nation’s future. So get out, come vote, support who you believe can best lead our country forward.”

Contact Jeff Burlew at jburlew@tallahassee.com or follow @JeffBurlew on Twitter.