Democrats on campaign trail divided by Kamala Harris

Democratic candidates in competitive election races are taking different tacks this cycle over how close to affiliate themselves with former Vice President Kamala Harris, who’s lent her support to many of them but whose loss in the 2024 election has made her a more polarizing figure.

Iowa state Rep. Josh Turek (D) told reporters this week he didn’t want Harris to campaign for him as he pursues a Senate seat this cycle — a sentiment Iowa gubernatorial candidate Rob Sand, the state’s auditor, also shared about Harris and former President Biden.

Former Rep. Mary Peltola’s (D-Alaska) Senate campaign also voiced frustration after Harris’s PAC issued a fundraising email for the red-state Democrat earlier this month.

But not all Democrats are keeping Harris at arm’s length.

The former vice president joined a Women for Ossoff call set up by Sen. Jon Ossoff’s (D-Ga.) reelection campaign. She also made a fundraising appeal on his Facebook page.

And Michigan Senate candidate Abdul El-Sayed said he was “grateful” to have Harris’s support after she endorsed him following his primary.

While the different tactics likely reflect the political realities of red and purple states, they’ve also raised questions about Harris’s political viability as she mulls a second presidential run.

“The VP did very well in some places and didn’t do great in others, and if you’re in a state where she didn’t perform well, it may not help you to have her campaign with you this fall,” said Democratic strategist Jamal Simmons, who served as Harris’s communications director in the vice president’s office.

“Each candidate has a different problem they’re trying to solve,” Simmons added.

Democratic strategist Anthony Coley, who worked for the Biden administration, says that to win in red states, Democratic candidates have to “distinguish themselves from a national Democratic brand that is deeply unpopular.”

“As the party’s most recent presidential nominee, Kamala Harris is closely tied to that brand,” Coley said.

“Harris still has a deep reservoir of goodwill among many Democrats. But this … speaks to the tough political terrain outside blue states and to the work Harris must do to recast herself as a populist, antiestablishment fighter if she wants to run for president again and expand the electoral map,” Coley added.

In a state like Michigan — particularly in the competitive Senate race — some Democrats point out Harris’s presence could be more of a problem for candidates.

“She is a huge liability,” said John Morgan, the Democratic mega-donor, adding that anyone “who has a shot to win” would want to steer clear.

“Look what happened in Alaska,” he said, referring to Harris’s PAC appeal on behalf of Peltola and how Republicans have used it to tie Harris to the candidate.

One Democratic strategist, who asked for anonymity to give a candid assessment, pointed to the electoral map in 2024.

“Look, the reality is, she underperformed in Michigan, particularly in places like Dearborn,” said the strategist, who has been involved in recent presidential elections. “And Elissa Slotkin was on the ballot and won. So that says a lot.”

“I think you’d rather have surrogates who can help,” they added.

The strategist said Harris could be an asset to former North Carolina Gov. Roy Cooper (D) in his Senate race in places like the state’s Research Triangle, the area in central North Carolina that covers Raleigh, Durham and Chapel Hill, and the parts between.

“I could see her being welcome or at least not unwelcome,” they said.

Harris has offered endorsements or issued fundraising emails toward a host of Democrats running in competitive elections this cycle, ranging from Peltola to Arkansas House candidate Chris Jones to Maine Senate candidate Troy Jackson.

In some cases, Democrats have welcomed her efforts — both public and private — to support them.

“Senator Ossoff is grateful for Vice President Harris’ help and support in his re-election campaign,” an Ossoff campaign spokesperson told The Hill.

Minnesota Lt. Gov. Peggy Flanagan’s (D) Senate campaign noted the former vice president contacted her after her primary win.

“Peggy was proud to campaign for Vice President Harris and appreciated her calling to congratulate her following her primary victory,” a Flanagan campaign spokesperson told The Hill. “Peggy values her relationship with Vice President Harris and remains focused on the leadership Minnesotans are looking for — a fighter who will take on the Trump administration and its reckless abuses of power.”

Jones, who’s running for Arkansas’s 2nd Congressional District, said in a statement he was “honored” to have Harris’s endorsement, adding that “her support means a great deal to this campaign and to the people of AR-02.”

El-Sayed also called Harris’s support “critical.” And while he was a part of the “Uncommitted” movement — where Democratic voters cast “uncommitted” votes instead of voting for then-presidential candidate Biden in Democratic primaries in 2024 as a way to voice frustration over the administration’s handling of the Israel-Hamas war — his statement noted he ultimately backed her in the 2024 election.

Simmons said Harris could easily go to Detroit to help “close the gap” with Black voters in Michigan, a group El-Sayed is eager to court for the general election.

Georgia Democratic strategist Fred Hicks said it makes sense that Ossoff would also welcome the former vice president’s support given that Black voters, particularly Black women, make up a core bloc of the Democratic base in the Peach State.

But some Democrats have notably pushed away the idea of Harris supporting them in their races.

“No thanks,” Sand told Politico in a recent interview when asked whether Biden or Harris should campaign for him. “Let’s move on. We need some new leadership.”

Turek also offered a short “no” and a chuckle when he was asked about what he thought of Sand’s comments, shooting down the idea of Harris campaigning for him.

Peltola, who is battling to topple Sen. Dan Sullivan (R) in Alaska, also did not appreciate Harris’s political group, Fight for the People PAC, issuing the fundraising appeal on her behalf.

“Mary isn’t seeking endorsements from anyone from the Lower 48 — her focus is and always will be Alaska,” her campaign told The New York Times earlier this month.

Some Senate candidates, meanwhile, haven’t acknowledged Harris’s support. Jackson, Cooper and Texas state Rep. James Talarico (D) have said little publicly about the former vice president’s support for them, though several of them backed her 2024 bid.

Democratic strategist Maria Cardona cautioned against reading too much into the reactions toward Harris, saying it was “so early for anyone to take any one little thing and try to read tea leaves into what that means for 2028.”

Cardona suggested the reactions were more about the political dynamics playing out across the country, saying the same situation would play out if a Democrat was in the White House and offering to campaign for their candidates during the midterms.

“What we all want here is for our candidates to win no matter where they are,” she said. “And so I think that no one is going to be taking this personally.”

But Hicks suggested candidates may be wary of encouraging Harris’s support lest it be seen as an implicit endorsement — or obligation to endorse — the former vice president if she runs for the White House in 2028, saying “people do not want to be seen as taking a side in 2028.”

“It’s not as much about the past as it is about the future.”