US

Nancy Pelosi backs Kamala Harris as Democratic grandees fall into line

US vice-president clinches support across party as money pours into campaign war chest

US vice-president Kamala Harris speaking at an event at the White House on Monday. She feted Joe Biden’s 'legacy of accomplishment' as president, describing it as 'unmatched in modern history'. Photograph: Susan Walsh/AP
James Politi and Lauren Fedor in Washington
Mon Jul 22 2024 - 19:59

Former speaker of the US House of Representatives Nancy Pelosi gave her ringing endorsement to Kamala Harris on Monday, bringing the US vice-president one step closer to locking up the Democratic Party’s nomination for the White House.

Ms Pelosi, a long-time Democratic leader who was seen as instrumental in the behind-the-scenes campaign to push President Joe Biden to step aside, said she endorsed Ms Harris’s bid “with immense pride and limitless optimism for our country’s future”. She added her support for Ms Harris was “official, personal and political”.

The former speaker became the latest high profile Democrat to throw her weight behind Ms Harris’s run for the White House, as endorsements and money poured in for the vice-president’s candidacy. Mr Biden endorsed Ms Harris shortly after announcing his decision to withdraw from the election on Sunday.

Former president Barack Obama remained one of the few party leaders on Monday who had yet to endorse Ms Harris.

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Three leading governors previously considered possible contenders to replace Mr Biden – Gretchen Whitmer of Michigan, JB Pritzker of Illinois and Andy Beshear of Kentucky – all backed Ms Harris on Monday. Bill and Hillary Clinton, California governor Gavin Newsom and other party grandees had announced their support earlier.

In a post on X, Ms Harris said she was marking the “first full day of our campaign” by travelling to Biden headquarters in Delaware. She also used a previously scheduled appearance at the White House to fete Mr Biden’s “legacy of accomplishment” as president, describing it as “unmatched in modern history”.

Ms Harris’s campaign has taken over the infrastructure and apparatus of the former Biden campaign, and said on Monday that it had raised nearly $50 million (€46 million) from small donors since the president dropped out, boosting her firepower for the election run.

Mr Beshear described the vice-president as smart, strong and kind, adding: “The contrast between her and those running on the other side couldn’t be clearer.”

Ms Harris also clinched on Monday endorsements from Wes Moore, the governor of Maryland, and Dick Durbin, the Illinois senator and second highest-ranking Democrat in the upper chamber of Congress.

The steady stream of support from top Democrats could help the party avoid the potential chaos of an “open convention”, when delegates convene in Chicago next month to officially pick their presidential candidate.

Joe Manchin, the centrist senator from West Virginia, briefly flirted with the idea of challenging Ms Harris before telling CBS News on Monday morning that he would not be running for president.

But he called on Democrats to hold a “mini primary” to find “the strongest candidate” rather than immediately rallying behind Ms Harris.

Michael Bloomberg, the Biden campaign donor and former Republican mayor of New York, said on X that the four weeks until the Democratic convention in Chicago were “more than enough time for the party to take the pulse of voters, especially in battleground states”.

He added: “The decision is too important to rush, because the election is too important to lose.”

Mr Biden announced he was stepping aside on Sunday after more than three weeks of Democratic Party infighting over whether the 81-year-old president was up to the job in the wake of a disastrous debate performance against his Republican rival Donald Trump last month.

Mr Biden swiftly endorsed Ms Harris, the 59-year-old former prosecutor and one-time US senator, as his successor, giving her a big advantage in the race for the Democratic nomination.

Ms Harris said she was “honoured” to have his endorsement and she intended to “earn and win this nomination”.

Mr Newsom, who had been considered a possible contender to face Mr Trump, backed Ms Harris late on Sunday, calling her “fearless” and “tenacious”, and said there was no one “better to prosecute the case against Donald Trump”.

Washington is rife with speculation over who Ms Harris might select as her running mate if she secures the nomination. Possible picks include several popular Democratic governors, including Mr Beshear and Josh Shapiro of Pennsylvania.

According to a person familiar with events on Sunday, Ms Harris spent more than 10 hours on Sunday placing calls to more than 100 party officials, members of Congress, governors, labour leaders, and advocacy and civil rights organisations. – Copyright The Financial Times Limited 2024