WASHINGTON — Rep. Hakeem Jeffries and Sen. Chuck Schumer, the top Democrats in Congress, will support Kamala Harris for president on Tuesday, three sources familiar with their plans told NBC News.
The two leaders, both from New York, will make the announcement during a news conference at 1 p.m. ET, the sources said.
While many elected Democrats, including President Joe Biden, quickly announced their support for Harris, the Senate majority leader and House minority leader said they wanted to meet with her in person first. That meeting has not yet taken place, sources close to the leaders told NBC News. But both Jefferies and Schumer spoke to Harris by phone.
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Schumer and Jeffries’ endorsement comes a day after Harris won the support of a majority of pledged delegates to the Democratic convention. The vote to make Harris the party’s official candidate for president will take place in early August, before the party convention.
Schumer, who served with Harris in the Senate, and Jeffries have said positive things about Harris and her campaign since Biden announced Sunday that he would not run for reelection, but stopped short of offering a formal endorsement. In a statement Monday, the leaders said Harris “is off to a great start” and they looked forward to “meeting in person with Vice President Harris soon as we work collectively to unify the Democratic Party and the country.”
Former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., endorsed Harris on Monday, joining a wide range of Democrats in Congress — including progressives like Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-N.Y., and Congressional Progressive Caucus Chair Pramila Jayapal, D-Wash., and popular governors who have been mentioned as potential rivals to Harris in the presidential race – in supporting the vice president. Although she is no longer in leadership, Pelosi played a key role in Biden’s exit from the 2024 campaign, clearing the way for Harris.
Schumer and Jeffries also had serious, private conversations with Biden in the weeks following a disastrous debate that raised unwavering concerns about his ability to run for re-election.
Schumer met with Biden in Rehoboth Beach, Delaware, on July 13 and told the president she was there “out of love and affection” but presented the case for him to drop out of the race in stark terms, a source familiar with the conversation told NBC. News The president needed to consider three important points: his legacy, the future of the country and the impact on Congress, Schumer said, according to this source. He also asked Biden to think about the Supreme Court.
Schumer ended the meeting by saying, “I don’t expect you to leave this room making a decision, but I do hope you think about what I said,” the source said.
Biden responded, “I need another week,” and then the two leaders hugged.
Schumer didn’t say much publicly the following week, instead speaking privately with Democratic members, White House officials, Jeffries, Pelosi and former President Barack Obama.
Schumer firmly believed that publicly calling out the president would be “counterproductive” and could embarrass the president. He also believed that the best way for Democrats to approach the situation was with some humanity and not just cold political calculation. Regardless of Biden’s decision, Democrats needed him to be able to campaign for himself or another Democratic candidate.
As he had suggested to Schumer, a week later, Biden announced his decision to drop out of the race and supported Harris.
Rebecca Kaplan It is Ali Vitali contributed.
This story originally appeared on NBCNews.com read the full story
