Former Vice President Kamala Harris endorsed Zohran Mamdani for mayor of New York City on Monday night, becoming the most prominent member of the Democratic establishment to back the democratic socialist candidate.
Ms. Harris was asked by Rachel Maddow during an interview on MSNBC whether she would lend her support to Mr. Mamdani, who has been spurned by many top Democrats after his upset victory over Andrew M. Cuomo, the former New York governor, in the party’s primary.
“Look, as far as I’m concerned, he’s the Democratic nominee and he should be supported,” Ms. Harris replied.
Ms. Maddow pressed again: “Do you endorse his candidacy?”
“I support the Democrat in the race, sure,” Ms. Harris said, without once saying the candidate’s name. She quickly added that Mr. Mamdani was “not the only star” running for mayor, mentioning candidates like Barbara Drummond in Mobile, Ala., and Helena Moreno in New Orleans, La.
“I hope that we don’t so over-index on New York City that we lose sight of the stars throughout our country,” Ms. Harris said. “So that’s where I am — we’ve got a big tent and we’ve got a lot of stars.”
Ms. Harris’s comments came during her first major television-news interview since losing the 2024 election to President Trump, timed to promote her new book, “107 Days.” The book offers the former vice president’s own account of her truncated presidential campaign against Mr. Trump, which began after the president she was campaigning for re-election with, Joseph R. Biden Jr., abandoned his presidential bid in July.
The remarks were notable because other top Democrats, including Senator Chuck Schumer of New York, have been cautious to back Mr. Mamdani, while others have avoided meeting him altogether.
Mr. Mamdani, a state assemblyman, has earned the support of fellow progressives like Senator Bernie Sanders of Vermont and Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez of New York, but some moderates have been more reluctant. Some have voiced fears that Republicans could use Mr. Mamdani’s candidacy and democratic socialist views to paint all Democrats as too left-wing for voters, imperiling them in next year’s midterm elections.