Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer and House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, both of New York, endorsed Vice President Kamala Harris to be the Democratic nominee for president at a joint press conference in Washington on Tuesday afternoon.

What You Need To Know

  • Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer and House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, both of New York, endorsed Vice President Kamala Harris to be the Democratic nominee for president

  • Schumer said he and Jeffries waited to endorse to let the process play out and see if there was any support for a candidate other than Harris to be considered

  • Schumer said he would address Biden’s decision to pass the torch in more depth during a Senate floor speech later on Tuesday

Harris — who was endorsed by President Joe Biden on Sunday afternoon as he announced he was dropping out of the race — has quickly racked up scores of endorsements from Democrats in Washington and across the country, successfully discouraged any major potential challengers from running and locked up the number of Democratic National Convention delegates needed to secure the nomination as of late Monday night, according to a tally by the Associated Press.

“The president’s selfless decision has given the Democratic Party the opportunity to unite behind a new nominee, and boy oh boy, are we enthusiastic,” Schumer said from Senate Democrats’ campaign headquarters. “When I spoke with [Harris] Sunday, she said she wanted the opportunity to win the nomination on her own, and to do so from the grassroots up, not top down. We deeply respected that.”

“She said she would work to earn the support of our party, and boy, has she done so in quick order,” he added.

Schumer said he and Jeffries waited to endorse to let the process play out and see if there was any support for a candidate other than Harris to be considered.

“President Joe Biden has made the selfless decision to pass the torch to Vice President Kamala Harris, who is ready, willing and able to lead us into the future,” Jeffries said after Schumer spoke. “Kamala Harris and her candidacy has excited and energized the House Democratic Caucus, the Democratic Party and the nation.”

“We're going to hold the Senate, we're going to win the house, we're going to elect Kamala Harris, as our next president in November,” Jeffries added.

Schumer said he and Jeffries would meet with Harris in-person “soon.”

Neither man ever publicly called on Biden to step aside, with Jeffries reiterating his support as late as Sunday morning. But Schumer reportedly traveled to Delaware to meet with Biden earlier this month and urge him to reconsider his decision to stay in the race after a disastrous debate performance in June led to weeks of consternation by Democrats over the president’s age and ability to take on former President Donald Trump.

“What I would say is that the president has done an amazing, amazing job as president, one of the best we've ever had, and he put his country first and made the right decision,” Schumer said when asked on Tuesday if he directly went to the president and asked him not to run for reelection. Earlier he said he knew it “was not an easy decision” for Biden.

Schumer said he would address Biden’s decision to pass the torch in further detail during a Senate floor speech later on Tuesday.

Speaker Emerita Nancy Pelosi, Jeffries’ immediate predecessor who remains in Congress and still holds considerable sway within the party, endorsed Harris for president on Monday morning after privately serving as a conduit to communicate concerns among Democrats about Biden to the White House.

"Today, it is with immense pride and limitless optimism for our country's future that I endorse Vice President Kamala Harris for President of the United States," Pelosi said in a statement posted to social media. "My enthusiastic support for Kamala Harris for President is official, personal and political."

Now, with Biden sidelined and no major Democrat considering a challenge to Harris’ hold on the party, the top congressional Democratic leaders have joined much of their respective caucuses in endorsing the vice president. As the debate over Biden’s future played out, many Democratic lawmakers expressed concerns about preserving their Senate majority and winning back the House this fall.

“Together we will keep and hopefully grow the Senate majority, and under future speaker Hakeem Jeffries, we will win back the House. Democrats are moving forward stronger and more united than ever before,” Schumer said. “In just the last 36 hours, I have seen a surge of enthusiasm from every corner of our party uniting behind Vice President Harris, and enthusiasm felt in every corner of the country, and it's contagious among Democrats. The volunteers, the small contributions, they're just pouring in in ways even beyond our expectations.”

The two leaders’ homestate delegation endorsed Harris on Monday night, along with the majority of New York’s congressional delegation, New York Gov. Kathy Hochul and New York City Mayor Eric Adams.

“She's really well positioned to prosecute the case against the convicted felon who's running on the other side of the ticket. And so, it was not a difficult decision for me at all. I think she'll be a fabulous candidate. And I think she's grown into herself and the job as vice president and is ready to take on this new challenge,” freshman New York Rep. Dan Goldman told Spectrum News on Tuesday morning.