Harris says he’ll run for president, but becomes frontrunner after Biden withdraws
The president is making this move just ahead of the party conference in Chicago, which is only a few weeks away. It could cause chaos if other candidates also enter the race. (Photo: Bloomberg)
By Akayla Gardner
US Vice President Kamala Harris made a bid for the Democratic presidential nomination after Joe Biden withdrew from the 2024 race. She won the support of her boss and quickly emerged as the party’s front-runner.
“I am honored to have the President’s endorsement and my intention is to earn and win this nomination,” Harris said in a statement Sunday. “I will do everything in my power to unite the Democratic Party — and unite our nation — to defeat Donald Trump.”
Biden, the oldest U.S. president in history at 81, said earlier on Sunday he would not seek re-election, reversing his decision after weeks of mounting pressure from fellow Democrats to end his candidacy. A disastrous debate performance in June created a political nightmare for Democrats who feared Biden would be unable to stop Trump from returning to the White House.
Biden endorsed Harris, 59, as the Democratic nominee, saying she had his “full support.” The president and Harris spoke several times Sunday before he announced his decision, a person familiar with the conversations said.
California Sen. Laphonza Butler, a close Harris ally who advised her 2020 presidential campaign, said the vice president is in talks with members of Congress, governors, representatives and organization leaders. Butler said she spoke with Harris on Sunday but declined to provide details about the conversation.
“This is a sprint,” Butler said in an interview. “She’s making the calls to make sure people know what she said in her statement: that she’s ready to earn this nomination.”
The president is making this move just before the party conference in Chicago. This could cause chaos if other candidates also enter the race.
Harris — the first female, Black and Asian vice president — is popular with significant parts of the Democratic base and could rally support among voters. The prospect of bypassing Harris would also be politically risky for the party, which relies heavily on the turnout of people of color, including Black women.
Celina Lake, a pollster who worked with the Biden campaign, said voters will look at Harris with fresh eyes now that she’s running. Lake believes Harris is well-positioned to energize key parts of the Democratic base, including young voters, women and people of color.
“She’s done a better job with those groups from the beginning,” Lake told Bloomberg TV. “She’s a great candidate at just the right time.”
Shortly after Biden’s announcement, a number of prominent Democrats and liberal groups expressed support for Harris, including former President Bill Clinton and Hillary Clinton, the 2016 Democratic presidential nominee, as well as progressive icon Senator Elizabeth Warren and major Democratic donor Reid Hoffman.
According to a source, Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer has no plans to challenge Harris for the nomination.
California Gov. Gavin Newsom also has no plans to run against Harris, according to CBS News. Newsom and Whitmer were both seen as potential contenders for the nomination.
Democratic National Committee Chairman Jaime Harrison said Sunday that the “American people will hear from the Democratic Party about the next steps and the path forward for the nominating process.”
Harris is still untested on a ticket. She ran for president in 2020, but ended her campaign before a single vote was cast.
Trump told CNN in an interview on Sunday that he thinks Harris will be easier to beat. However, polls in recent weeks have shown Harris doing better against Trump than Biden.
Her standing among swing-state voters has also improved after a shaky start to her tenure. A Bloomberg News/Morning Consult poll conducted in July showed that 77 percent of Democrats said they would support Harris if Biden were unable to continue his campaign.
The Biden campaign has directed its staff to work toward Harris’ election, according to a source familiar with an all-hands call with the team on Sunday. Biden’s campaign chairwoman, Jennifer O’Malley Dillon, described Sunday as a day of anger and sadness in light of Biden’s withdrawal, but also offered words of optimism for the vice president.
Harris had been the target of attacks earlier in the presidential race as polls showed voters were concerned about Biden’s age and fitness, with Republicans even saying that a vote for the incumbent president was a vote for his running mate.
A key reason Harris emerged as Biden’s most practical successor was her legal ability to tap into the campaign’s war chest. She also has the highest name recognition among potential alternative candidates.
Some observers have expressed concern that immediately crowning Harris as heir apparent could appear undemocratic, especially given that Biden won the nomination in the primaries. Some Democrats have called for an open convention, where potential candidates could compete for the nomination. It is unclear, however, whether other party figures will challenge Harris.
Will Jawando, a Democratic Rep. from Maryland and a former Obama administration official, said he would not support so-called “mini-primaries” and stressed the need for the party to unite with just three months to go until Election Day.
“We don’t have time for that,” Jawando said. “The only way Donald Trump wins is to be divided right now and not get behind the vice president.”
First print: Jul 22, 2024 | 06:49 AM IST