U.S. Senator Chris Dodd, a Democrat from the northeastern state of Connecticut, announced on Thursday his candidacy for the party's presidential nomination for 2008.

In a statement, Dodd announced that the United States was at "grave risk of losing many things we've always taken for granted."

"I am running for president of the United States of America because I believe that we have reached a defining moment in American history," he said.

Todd, 62, was first elected to Congress in 1974. He served as a member of the House of Representatives for six years and was elected to the Senate in 1980.

He voted in 2002 to authorize the Iraq war but was now a critic of the unpopular war. He opposed to Bush's plan to increase U.S. troop levels in Iraq, and called the administration's Iraq policy a failure.

Before Todd, several Democrats have launched their campaigns for the White House in the 2008 presidential election.

Former U.S. Senator John Edwards, the Democratic Party's vice presidential candidate in 2004, Iowa Governor Tom Vilsack and Ohio Representative Dennis Kucinich all have announced their bids for the party's presidential nomination. Democratic Senator Joseph Biden from Delaware has also announced his intention to run for presidency, but short of launching a formal campaign.

Other potential Democratic candidates included New York Senator Hillary Clinton, Illinois Senator Barack Obama, and former Vice President Al Gore and Senator John Kerry, the party's presidential nominees for 2000 and 2004 respectively.

Editor: Yan