Former Vice President Kamala Harris on Monday advised Democrats not to lose sight of other “stars” in the party as socialist New York City mayoral candidate Zohran Mamdani gains popularity among liberals, and some on both sides look to make him the face of the Left.
Mamdani is a socialist running on the Democratic Party’s ticket to become the Big Apple’s next mayor. The race has become one of the most closely watched campaigns in the country, as it has captured the growing divisions among Democrats over whether to embrace progressive views held by left-wing factions or hold to more traditional establishment policies favored by the party’s old guard.
While Harris bucked pressure from moderates not to back Mamdani during an appearance on the Rachel Maddow Show this week, she suggested Democrats might be placing undue attention on the New York race. Party leadership would do far better to focus on “the stars throughout our country who are right now running for mayor and many other offices,” Harris said, as she attempted to shift attention from Mamdani’s controversial campaign to the “big tent” of views she said the Democratic Party contains.
“There are people like Barbara Drummond in Mobile, Alabama, Helena Moreno in New Orleans; they’re all running for mayor too, and they are stars,” Harris said Monday evening during her first news interview since the 2024 election, which she lost to President Donald Trump.
“So I hope that we don’t so overindex on New York City that we lose sight of the stars throughout our country who are right now running for mayor and many other offices, governor, and so on,” she continued. “We got a big tent, and we got a lot of stars.”
Of Mamdani’s candidacy, Harris added, “I support the Democrat in the race, sure. But let me just say this: He’s not the only star.”
The former vice president’s comments come as she promotes her new book, 107 Days, which details her 2024 presidential campaign. The book is available for purchase now.
She weighed in on Mamdani’s campaign as leading Democrats have been pressured to offer their assessments of the candidate’s run for office.
Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer and House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, both New York Democrats, declined over the weekend to say if they’ll endorse the socialist, who has attracted criticism from moderates in the party over a variety of issues, including holding anti-capitalist views and refusing to condemn the antisemitic phrase “globalize the intifada.”
While Jay Jacobs, the state Democratic Party chairman in New York, said last week that he wouldn’t endorse the Democratic mayoral nominee, Harris has become the latest prominent Democrat to back Mamdani after New York Gov. Kathy Hochul announced her support earlier this month.