Harris to give speech on importance of young leaders in coming years

Vice President Harris will travel to Maryland next week to deliver a speech focused on young leaders and the role they must play in the coming years during the Trump administration, a White House official said Friday.

Harris, who lost November’s election to President-elect Trump, will give remarks in nearby Prince George’s County to an audience of high school and college students, recent graduates and apprentices who have been active in their communities, the White House official said.

Harris is expected to focus on the importance of remaining engaged in the fight for basic freedoms, and will zero in on the idea that “the leadership of every day Americans is even more urgent and necessary in the months and years ahead,” the White House official said.

The vice president is expected to highlight the role young people must play in the years to come to drive change on issues like climate, gun violence, reproductive rights and voting rights.

Harris’s speech will mark one of her first major public addresses since November’s election. The vice president replaced President Biden as the Democratic candidate in late July after Biden announced he would not seek reelection. 

While Harris ignited significant enthusiasm among Democratic donors and supporters, Trump swept all seven battleground states en route to a convincing victory over Harris in November.

Harris has not spoken at length about her political future, and some operatives have speculated whether she might run for governor of California in 2026, when Gavin Newsom (D) is term limited, or if she will lay the groundwork for another White House bid in 2028.