Dozens of North Texas political leaders endorse Kamala Harris for president (2024)

Around 40 North Texas state, county and city officials joined the chorus of endorsem*nts nationwide for Vice President Kamala Harris to lead the Democratic party’s ticket after President Joe Biden ended his reelection bid.

Democratic Congresswoman Jasmine Crockett, Dallas County Judge Clay Lewis Jenkins and Dallas County Sheriff Marian Brown were among elected officials, local party leaders and candidates during a Monday virtual news conference saying they’re backing Harris to secure the party’s presidential nomination ahead of the Democratic National Convention next month in Chicago.

The coalition of leaders representing areas in Dallas, Collin and Tarrant counties said they felt the vice president was the best choice to beat Republican nominee Donald Trump in the November election. They also said she’ll energize voters who were considering sitting out this cycle and would continue building on the policies of the Biden administration to strengthen cities’ infrastructure and health care access.

“We stand with Kamala Harris for U.S. president because she is devoted to decency, she is devoted to diplomacy and she’s dedicated to save our democracy,” said state Rep. Carl Sherman of DeSoto.

Among officials either part of Monday’s news conference or named by Jenkins as also being in support were Congressman Marc Veasey; state Sens. Royce West and Nathan Johnson; more than a dozen state representatives, including Rafael Anchia, John Bryant, Victoria Neave Criado, Mihaela Plesa and Chris Turner; Tarrant County commissioners Roy Charles Brooks and Alisa Simmons; Arlington Mayor Jim Ross; Dallas County District Attorney John Creuzot; and Dallas County Democratic Party Chair Kardal Coleman.

Biden officially endorsed Harris as the next Democratic nominee soon after announcing his withdrawal Sunday. The president’s announcement came amid widespread pressure, including from his own party’s leaders, to step aside in the 2024 presidential race after a poor debate performance against Trump in June and questions about his fitness for office.

Harris, a former U.S. senator and California attorney general, is the only declared candidate for the Democratic presidential nomination so far. She quickly secured the support of several Democratic convention delegates from Texas and many prominent Democrats from around the country, such as former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, former President Bill Clinton, former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and several Democratic governors, including California’s Gavin Newsom.

Trump won Texas in the 2020 presidential election. In North Texas, voters in Dallas and Tarrant Counties voted for Biden, while voters in Collin County favored Trump.

None of the dozens of North Texas supporters of Harris said Monday they would withdraw their support if other challengers emerge for the presidential nomination.

“I don’t care whoever gets into this race,” said Dallas County Commissioner John Wiley Price. “I am with Vice President Kamala Harris.”

Crockett said she believed it’s important to secure who would oppose Trump on the ballot as soon as possible to bring clarity to the race and to begin campaigning.

“No. 1, I don’t want chaos,” said Crockett, who represents parts of Dallas and Tarrant counties. “No. 2, I absolutely want to win.” She said Harris was “more than ready to take the reins” from Biden.

Trump was formally nominated during the Republican National Convention last week in Milwaukee, where Gov. Greg Abbott, U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz and Dallas Mayor Eric Johnson were among Republican supporters in the state rallying behind the former president.

Trump is the first endorsem*nt of a partisan candidate Johnson has made in his five years as Dallas mayor, after previously vowing not to weigh in on partisan races while the city’s top elected official. That changed after Johnson, a former Democratic state representative, declared himself a Republican last fall. The mayor spoke at the Republican National Convention and ended his speech by urging the crowd to “make America safe again by retiring Joe Biden and electing Donald J. Trump.”

Dallas City Council members Carolyn King Arnold, Tennell Atkins and Jaime Resendez were among officials on the call Monday supporting Harris.

“There’s no reason for us to get into the gloom and doom,” Arnold said. “Let’s move forward with Kamala Harris. She’s the one to get the job done, and there’s no ‘ifs’ or ‘ands’ about it.”

The Democratic National Convention runs from Aug. 19 to 22. The election is Nov. 5.