AAlmost immediately after President Joe Biden abandoned his bid for a second term and formally endorsed his Vice President Kamala Harris to succeed him, senior figures from across the Democratic Party lined up behind her, giving Harris a surge of momentum in an unprecedented struggle for great power. party presidential nomination. However, some notable exceptions that have retained her support suggest that the vice president has not yet been named.
Key pillars of Biden’s base were already supporting Harris as of Sunday night, including Bill and Hillary Clinton, Rep. Jim Clyburn of South Carolina and the influential fundraising arm of the Congressional Black Caucus. AFL-CIO union leaders, a crucial part of any Democratic candidate’s national game, also signaled their enthusiasm for Harris on Sunday and could vote on her official endorsement in the coming days.
Biden moved quickly to try to rally overwhelming support for Harris well before the Democratic National Convention began in Chicago on Aug. 19. The Democratic Party plans to hold a virtual roll call vote to officially decide its candidate at the beginning of the month. To officially become the party’s candidate, the nominee requires the support of 1,976 delegate votes. More than 3,000 people have pledged to support Biden, who was already working behind the scenes on Sunday to try to send as many of his delegates to Harris.
Some powerful Democratic voices, however, have remained notably silent on Harris. Former President Barack Obama, for example, issued a lengthy statement applauding his former vice president’s decision to step aside as proof that he is “a patriot of the highest order.” However, Obama did not mention Harris. “We will navigate uncharted waters in the coming days. But I have extraordinary confidence that our party’s leaders will be able to create a process from which a remarkable candidate emerges,” Obama said. Similarly, former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi called Biden a “patriotic American” but said nothing about Harris. Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer and House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries also stopped short of endorsing Harris on Sunday.
But many other powerful Democratic Party figures have come out publicly to support Harris as their candidate. Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro, one of several Democratic governors often mentioned as presidential candidates, said Harris is “ready to be president.” Massachusetts Senator Elizabeth Warren, who ran against Harris in the 2020 presidential primary, called Harris “a proven fighter who has been a national leader in safeguarding consumers and protecting access to abortion” and said that Harris, “as a former -prosecutor” would be able to “present a compelling argument against allowing Donald Trump to regain the White House.” Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg, another former Harris challenger, said Sunday that he would “do everything he can to help elect” Harris.
Among the slew of Democrats in Congress who quickly supported Harris, few drew as much attention as Clyburn, whose support for Biden in 2020 won him the party’s nomination. Antjuan Seawright, a political adviser to Clyburn and Jeffries, says Biden’s quick support of Harris, minutes after he announced he was leaving the race, was a clear message to Biden’s allies that is resonating across the party.
“He promised to be a bridge candidate, this is proof of that,” says Seawright. “But he also understands that it’s not about what America was, it’s about what we know it can be and hope to be, and Kamala Harris represents that.”
This story originally appeared on Time.com read the full story
