Within 24 hours of Joe Biden ending his reelection bid, an overwhelming number of House Democrats had endorsed Kamala Harris for president. Those who hadn’t were holding out for something in return.
Fewer than 30 House Democrats hadn’t endorsed Harris by Monday evening.
“I want to hear about the border; I want to hear how we’re going to address it and what we’re going to do to improve conditions on the border,” Texas Democratic Rep. Vicente Gonzalez told NOTUS, adding that he hadn’t heard from her team yet.
Ohio Rep. Marcy Kaptur told NOTUS she will not make an official endorsement for the top of the ticket until a viable option for vice president arises. Her criteria: a nominee from the “battleground states like Michigan, Pennsylvania, Ohio or Wisconsin” who can appeal particularly to voters in the Midwest.
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“Most people don’t see our region even though we’ve got one of the largest economies and are just one of the most critical parts of the country,” Kaptur said. “We were neglected for too long. I’m not going to sell out for just any candidate.”
Democrats need to win at least some Midwestern states in order to win the presidency. In light of ex-president Donald Trump selecting Ohio Sen. JD Vance as a running mate, Kaptur questions if the party can accomplish this goal with Harris leading the way.
“It’s a different part of America,” Kaptur said. “It requires a tailored approach, and I’m not ready to endorse Harris to do that.”
Michigan Rep. Rashida Tlaib also hasn’t endorsed Harris. She said people in her district “want to see a permanent cease-fire and an end to the funding of genocide in Gaza,” as well as other progressive policies, and that she is “eager to speak to Vice President Harris about all of these issues and more,” in a statement to The Intercept.
Those who lined up behind Harris on Monday instead of Sunday, when she first established her intent to seek the nomination, insisted there was nothing notable about their delay.
Texas Rep. Lloyd Doggett, the first House Democrat to publicly call for Biden to step aside, said he wanted to see if anyone else jumped in the race before endorsing Harris Monday night. He added that he hadn’t heard from her team yet.
“From the start that I first asked President Biden to step aside, I called for a fair, open democratic process, and I just thought it was important to allow more than 24 hours to see if there was anyone else interested in the race,” Doggett told NOTUS.
He credited Harris’ strength in the party with the fact that no other potential candidates have hopped in the race. “She appears to have done a great job of clearing the field, and I don’t see any prospective opponents out there,” Doggett said. As the only candidate in sight, “She’ll certainly have my full support.”
Harris reportedly spent more than 10 hours calling party leaders, elected officials, advocacy groups and labor leaders Sunday.
Georgia Rep. David Scott, who has not released a public statement on the matter, told NOTUS on Monday that he “definitely” supports Harris.
Democrats running in swing districts that Republicans are targeting to flip made up a third of the roughly 30 Democratic holdouts who haven’t yet endorsed Harris as of Monday afternoon, before three more swing candidates fell in line late in the day.
The National Republican Congressional Committee took hold of the opportunity to claim Democrats want to dissociate from Biden.
“It’s no wonder they’re being tepid about vocalizing their support for Kamala Harris, they know they own the disastrous current state of affairs that are the direct result of failed Biden-Harris policies,” NRCC spokesperson Savannah Viar sent NOTUS in a statement.
Rep. Darren Soto, the only NRCC target in Florida, was also the only Democrat who didn’t endorse Harris Sunday. By 1 p.m. Monday, he came around, and his staff insisted “there’s nothing really behind” the delay.
But the few still standing out on their own are holding out hope for a phone call — and political promise — to sway them.
“It’s only been 24 hours, right?” Gonzalez said. “I haven’t heard from her campaign team yet, so I thought it was still early.”
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Claire Heddles and Calen Razor are NOTUS reporters and Allbritton Journalism Institute fellows.
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