Vice President Kamala Harris began a race to lock up the Democratic nomination Sunday afternoon—with her allies working flat out to stop the party’s other top candidates from running.
She secured an instant boost with Gretchen Whitmer, the two-term Michigan governor, indicating she would not run.
But it had only been hours since some of the most powerful Democrats were pushing for a free-for-all open process should Biden drop out. Ahead of Biden’s announcement, former speaker Nancy Pelosi told colleagues she would be in favor of such a “competitive” scramble, rather than an anointing, the New York Times reported. A Friday call between Harris and party donors also left some fuming when she did not address concerns about Biden.
