circleASHINGTON — With President Biden announcing Sunday that he is dropping out of the presidential race, Democrats are scrambling to field Vice President Kamala Harris as their next presidential candidate in 2024. Harris, a former California senator and attorney general, quickly garnered support from progressive and reproductive rights groups who backed her record on abortion policy and maternal health care, two longtime policy priorities that Democrats hope will resonate with voters.
“No one has fought harder for abortion rights and access than she has, and we are proud to support her in this election,” Mini Timmaraj, president and CEO of Reproductive Freedom for All, said in a statement an hour after Biden withdrew from the race.
While Harris did not explicitly mention reproductive rights in accepting Biden’s endorsement, she acknowledged that the policies outlined by a right-wing think tank that endorsed Biden for the next Trump administration include broad abortion restrictions and reforms to many health agencies.
“I will do everything in my power to unite the Democratic Party and the country to defeat Donald Trump and his extreme Project 2025 agenda,” Harris said in a statement.
Some progressive biotech entrepreneurs and health care venture capitalists supported Harris, while others had reservations, and some health care analysts worried about the uncertainty that a chaotic presidential election would bring.
Harris is First Vice President During her term in office, she visited an abortion provider. Unlike Biden, who expressed anti-abortion views while in the Senate, Harris supports abortion and He grilled Biden during the 2019 primaries. About his changing attitude.
Planned Parenthood acknowledged Harris’ visit to the abortion clinic in a statement supporting her candidacy. “Harris has always put the needs and experiences of patients and health care workers first. … We know she will continue to fight tooth and nail to restore the fundamental rights that have been stripped away,” said Alexis McGill Johnson, the group’s president and CEO.
Emily’s List, a nonprofit dedicated to electing abortion-rights women to office, also quickly endorsed the vice president: “This election will be fought and won on the issue of reproductive freedom. Kamala Harris has been a champion for abortion rights throughout her career,” said Jessica Mackler, president of Emily’s List. I wrote to X“She is well positioned to mobilize the voters we need to win this election, especially women, people of color and younger voters.”
Republicans, and particularly presidential candidate Donald Trump, have welcomed the overturning of Roe v. Wade but have distanced themselves from broad abortion bans in recent months, making it important for Harris to make a clear distinction to voters in the months leading up to the November election.
“We are working diligently to mobilize voters of color and engage our communities in support of Vice President Harris, who has shown time and time again that she will fight for us, our families and our communities,” said Norbeze Flint, president of the abortion rights group All In Action Fund.
Anti-abortion groups, including Susan B. Anthony Pro-Life America, see Harris’ record as a potential drawback.
“While Joe Biden struggles to say the word abortion, Kamala Harris shouts it,” the group’s president, Marjorie Dannenfelser, said in a statement.
In addition to reproductive rights groups, a caucus of lawmakers representing the most progressive and diverse wings of the Democratic Party also quickly endorsed Harris on Sunday.
The vice president “will mobilize and energize our base,” House Progressive Caucus Chair Pramila Jayapal said in a statement released within an hour of Biden’s announcement. “Now that Donald Trump and the Republican Party have stripped women of their reproductive freedom, we will respond by electing the first woman president.”
If elected, Harris would be the first woman, Black woman and South Asian American to hold the Oval Office.
Leaders of the Congressional Black Caucus were also quick to endorse Harris, with the vice president “committed to reducing maternal mortality, protecting reproductive freedom, and ensuring economic opportunity for all” under the Biden administration, Rep. Steven Horsford (D-Nev.), chairman of the CBC, and Rep. Gregory Meeks (D-N.Y.), chairman of the CBC PAC, said in a statement.
The medical community under the Harris administration
Harris’ healthcare policies will be revealed for the first time during the election campaign, but Emily Gee of the Action Center for American Progress said she is confident that Harris will adhere to the Biden administration’s policies, such as expanding drug price negotiations to those not enrolled in Medicare and limiting price increases.
Some socially progressive biotech CEOs and venture capitalists had positive things to say about Harris.
John Maraganoa, founder and former CEO of biotechnology company Alnylam Inc., said Harris is from industry hub California and recognizes the value of science and truth, but is unsure whether he will prioritize innovation in biotechnology and pharmaceuticals.
“Trump’s reelection would call into question the tenets of our society: science and truth, and that’s the most unacceptable thing,” Maraganoa told STAT.
Ovid Therapeutics CEO Jeremy Levin similarly called on the pharmaceutical industry to support candidates who believe in scientific evidence and don’t spread misinformation about vaccines and public health.
“This announcement is clear: That’s the kind of candidate we’re looking at,” Levin said of Harris.
Bob Kocher, who worked in the Obama administration and is now a partner at venture capital firm Venrock, said Harris offers an option for those who want greater access to health care for women, subsidized premiums for Affordable Care Act plans and more negotiation on drug prices.
But not everyone in the medical community was as enthusiastic. Ted Love, president of the Biotechnology Innovation Authority, said he thought Biden made the right choice by stepping down, but he did not explicitly endorse Harris.
“I look forward to learning more about both presidential candidates’ priorities and how they will support the innovations needed to drive greater progress for patients and support broader access to health care,” Love said in a written statement.
Some worry that the possibility of a candidate who hasn’t gone through the party’s primary vetting process could introduce uncertainty into the nomination process. It’s also not certain that Harris will be the nominee, as key party figures including former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and former President Barack Obama did not endorse her in their statements Sunday about Biden dropping out of the race.
Vinod Khosla, founder of venture capital firm Khosla Ventures, called for an open convention to select a moderate candidate like Michigan Governor Gretchen Whitmer or Pennsylvania Governor Josh Shapiro.
“It will be great to see America no longer held hostage by MAGA and DEI extremists,” Khosla wrote on the social platform X.
Harris is doing just a little better against Trump than Biden, New York Times/Siena College Poll A survey conducted earlier this month found that 47% of Pennsylvania voters supported Harris, 45% preferred Biden over Trump and 48% preferred Trump over both Democrats. The same poll found that Harris and Biden had a slight lead in Virginia, a state that has voted for Democratic candidates for two decades.
Adam Feuerstein, Allison DeAngelis and Matthew Harper contributed reporting.
