Phil Matier of the San Francisco Chronicle reports Senator Kamala Harris (D-CA) will announce on or around Martin Luther King’s birthday weekend that she will run for the Democratic nomination for president.
Harris has been coy about her intentions, but has been tagged as a rising star in the Democratic Party since she won the Senate race in 2016. She previously had served two terms as California’s Attorney General after being San Francisco’s chief prosecutor as District Attorney.
Matier cited unnamed sources for his story. Harris previously had said that would should announce her intentions over the holidays, but that did not happen.
California’s junior Senator made the rounds on the morning talk shows this week promoting her new books, The Truths We Hold: An American Journey
and an accompanying children’s picture book.
These days it seems a book is a prerequisite for running for president. The release of her book this week has only increased anticipation for a presidential announcement.
“I think a mishandled announcement can hurt more than a well-handled announcement helps,” Joel Benenson, a veteran of former President Barack Obama’s and Hillary Clinton’s presidential campaigns, told Politico. “A good announcement is important only because a bad announcement will create some press narrative that will slow you down in the beginning.”
To win, Harris will have to overcome a lack of national name recognition despite taking a prominent role during the Senate nomination hearing for Supreme Court Justice Brett Kavanaugh.
“Harris is well known in California, but she and the other candidates are still in the single digits nationally,” University of San Francisco political science Professor James Taylor said.
“Right now, Sen. Bernie Sanders and former Vice President Joe Biden are the only candidates with double digit support in national polls,” he said.
AsAmNews has Asian America in its heart. We’re an all-volunteer effort of dedicated staff and interns. Check out our Twitter feed and Facebook page for more content. Please consider interning, joining our staff or submitting a story.
