Kamala Harris has warmer words for Zohran Mamdani days after a tepid endorsement of the NYC mayoral candidate

By Edward-Isaac Dovere, CNN

(CNN) — Kamala Harris is in New York for the start of her book tour, but she also took care of a little political business while in town: fielding a call on Wednesday afternoon from Zohran Mamdani, the Democratic nominee for mayor in New York City.

The call, according to two people familiar with it, was warmer and more fulsome than Harris’ answer when Rachel Maddow asked her on Monday during an interview on MSNBC if she would endorse Mamdani.

“I support the Democrat in the race, sure,” Harris said then, before highlighting other Democrats across the country and arguing not all of the focus should be on New York City.

She backed Mamdani more strongly on Wednesday, making clear that she would become perhaps the highest-profile Democrat to formally back Mamdani, the 33-year-old democratic socialist whose candidacy has inspired younger voters while roiling some in the party.

On the phone, Harris told Mamdani that while they don’t agree on everything, for New York to succeed, he needs to succeed. Mamdani thanked her for her support on the call, saying that he was taking inspiration from her joyful approach to campaigning, the sources familiar with the call said.

Harris discussed the call during the first stop of her tour to promote her new campaign memoir.

“When he called to thank me, I said, ‘One of the reasons I am excited about your candidacy is you are bringing people in,’” she said. “That is so powerful.”

The call comes after months of tricky navigating by both: Mamdani did not endorse Harris when she was running for president last year, which several of the prominent Democrats who have held off on supporting him now tend to point to. Mamdani said during the mayoral campaign that he voted for Harris.

Mamdani’s democratic socialist politics also put him enough out of step with her that people around the former vice president were making clear to some concerned donors and other supporters that her stepdaughter Ella Emhoff’s backing his campaign should not be seen as representing her.

“They discussed the campaign’s affordability agenda, the importance of joy in public service, and the Vice President expressed her support not only for this campaign but for Zohran’s efforts to deliver results in governance,” Mamdani spokesperson Jeffrey Lerner said in a statement Wednesday.

No plans were made for a more formal endorsement or joint appearance on the trail, the sources said.

This story and headline have been updated with additional details.

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