Pelosi Endorses Harris As CA Democrats Rally Around One Of Their Own

CALIFORNIA — California Democrats moved swiftly to support one of their own after President Joe Biden’s unprecendented but not necessarily unexpected decision to end his re-election bid and endorse Vice President Kamala Harris as the inheritor of his campaign machine.

Speaker Emerita Nancy Pelosi, who had been one of the notable holdouts to Harris following Biden’s endorsement Sunday, endorsed Harris on Monday after initially encouraging a primary to strengthen the eventual nominee.

Pelosi said she was lending her "enthusiastic support" to Harris' effort to lead the party.

Born in Oakland and a Brentwood resident, Harris served as California's junior U.S. senator for less than one term before being tapped as Biden's running mate in 2020. She previously served as San Francisco district attorney and California attorney general before being elected to the senate.

Harris made history as the first woman, the first Black American and the first South Asian American to be elected vice president. The 59-year-old is married to Los Angeles lawyer Douglas Emhoff.

Gov. Gavin Newsom described Harris as tough, fearless and tenacious, adding “no one is better to prosecute the case against Donald Trump's dark vision and guide our country in a healthier direction than America’s Vice President.”

San Francisco Mayor London Breed said Harris “has the experience, the strength, the judgment and the integrity to defeat Donald Trump and serve as our next President.”

Similar endorsements came down from U.S. Sen. Laphonza Butler and U.S. Rep. Adam Schiff, of Burbank, who’s running for Butler's Senate seat against former Dodgers star Steve Garvey. Butler has held the seat since the death of Dianne Feinstein.

Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass, who was reported to be on Biden's short list of vice presidential candidates in 2020 when she was a congresswoman, endorsed Harris hours after the president’s announcement.

"Vice President Harris leads with strength, courage, and compassion. She has been an invaluable ally in our work to improve LA's economy, safety and infrastructure, and in our work to house Angelenos," Bass said.

California Democrats, including U.S. Sen. Alex Padilla, praised Biden as a transformative leader who put the needs of the country before his own and left America better than it was when he entered the White House.

More than 700 pledged delegates have told The Associated Press or announced that they plan to support Harris at the Democratic National Convention, which is over one-third of the pledged delegates she needs in order to clinch the nomination. Democratic National Committee rules most recently set 1,976 pledged delegates as the benchmark to win the nomination.

Former President Barack Obama held off on an immediate endorsement, as some in the party have expressed worry that the quick shift to Harris would appear to be a coronation, instead pledging his support behind the eventual party nominee.

The convention is scheduled to be held Aug. 19-22 in Chicago, but the party had announced it would hold a virtual roll call to formally nominate Biden before in-person proceedings begin. The convention's rules committee is scheduled to meet this week to finalize its nomination process and it is unclear how it will be adjusted to reflect Biden's exit.

California’s Republicans were quick to weigh in on the weekend’s developments.

“Going forward, Democrats will have to grapple with two questions: If Joe Biden is unfit to serve four more years, is he fit to serve the remainder of his term? And is disastrous California Democrat Kamala Harris, who enabled a clearly declining Biden during his time as president, really the best backup option?” Jessica Millan Patterson, chairwoman of the state’s Republican Party, said in a prepared statement.

“President Biden tasked her with solving the border crisis, and in turn, she made our country less safe, allowing millions more to flood into our country illegally. As California’s top cop, she allowed criminals to thrive, including refusing to stop Prop. 47 that still wreaks havoc on our state today.

"Just as she failed on behalf of the Golden State, something Californians remember all too well, Harris owns the failed Biden-Harris agenda that led to rising prices, a weakened global standing, failing schools and surging crime.”

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