"I will continue to impress upon Chairman Bernanke that his most important job as America's central banker is to give families and businesses the peace of mind that their economy is working for them," Reid, a Nevada Democrat, said in a statement late Friday.
Two other Democrats who face re-election this year, Barbara Boxer of California and Russ Feingold of Wisconsin, said they will oppose the 56-year-old former Princeton economist.
Bernanke has drawn fire from some lawmakers for lax regulation of banks before the financial crisis and for bailouts of firms such as American International Group Inc.
"You have this populist surge out there that's been intensified and reinforced by the Massachusetts election," said Norm Ornstein, a political scientist at the American
Enterprise Institute in Washington, who said Bernanke is still likely to be confirmed.
Christopher Dodd, the Senate Banking Committee chairman who proposes stripping the Fed of banking supervision authority, renewed his support for the Fed chief. He said rejecting him would send the "worst signal to the markets right now" and produce an economic "tailspin."
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