Obama announces democrat endorsements for 2018 midterm elections

'I'm confident that, together, they’ll strengthen this country we love'

Former President Barack Obama (REUTERS)

Barack Obama has announced his endorsements for America's 2018 midterm elections in a series of tweets.

The former president endorsed 81 candidates vying for congressional seats, those running for the Senate, as well as candidates in various state level elections across the US.

Mr Obama wrote that he was "proud to endorse such a wide and impressive array of Democratic candidates – leaders as diverse, patriotic, and big-hearted as the America they’re running to represent.”

Republicans currently have control of both the House and the Senate. All 435 seats in the House up for grabs, while 35 are set to be contested in the Senate.

Democrats need to win more than 23 seats to gain majority in Congress.

Among those endorsed by Mr Obama, are Harley Rouda and Katie Hill from California, Sean Casten and Brendan Kelly for Congress in Illinois and Stacey Abrams for governor of Georgia.

“’I'm confident that, together, they’ll strengthen this country we love by restoring opportunity, repairing our alliances and standing in the world, and upholding our fundamental commitment to justice, fairness, responsibility, and the rule of law,” Mr Obama wrote. “But first, they need our votes.”

Mr Obama recently made waves online when he shared the importance of empowering women to positions of leadership across Africa. While speaking at a town hall in Johannesburg, South Africa, the former president said men were getting on his “nerves recently.”

“I think empowering more women on the continent, that... is going to lead to some better policies,” he added.