Liccardo, Breed and other big-city California mayors back Harris for president

San Jose Mayor Sam Liccardo backed Sen. Kamala Harris for president Thursday, lending his support to a fellow former Bay Area prosecutor as her campaign rolled out endorsements from a slate of California mayors.

“Senator Harris stands head and shoulders above the current field in the ability to articulate a vision that can move America forward and a willingness to say what needs to be said,” Liccardo told the Bay Area News Group in an interview. “She’s been a great champion for California and for our values.”

In Harris’ latest move to consolidate home state support, she also announced endorsements from Mayors London Breed of San Francisco, Darrell Steinberg of Sacramento, Robert Garcia of Long Beach and Aja Brown of Compton.

Harris’ campaigns for office “paved the way for me and many women who have sought elected office in this state,” Breed said in a statement. “She is acutely aware of the work that needs to be done on behalf of this nation and is prepared to lead and lift up hard-working men and women across this nation.”

The former state attorney general and San Francisco district attorney, Harris has already won the backing of elected officials up and down the California ballot, including Gov. Gavin Newsom, five members of Congress and a host of other state officers and legislators. Oakland Mayor Libby Schaaf also endorsed Harris at her campaign kick-off rally earlier this year.

The Golden State is expected to play an unusually important role this year due to its early spot on the calendar and its major delegate haul. Californians will go to the polls on March 3, just after the four traditional early states and on the same day as more than a half-dozen other states, including Texas, North Carolina and Virginia.

As of Thursday, Harris has the support of all the Democratic leaders of California’s nine biggest cities except for Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti, who publicly mused about a presidential bid before deciding not to run in January. He hasn’t made a choice in the race.

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Letters: Acting on climate | Bad-air ban | Pleasanton schools | A case of waste | Vaccine doubts | Election volunteers The latest endorsements for Harris aren’t exactly a surprise. Breed, who called the senator her “Bay Area sister,” hosted a friendly San Francisco event for Harris’ book tour earlier this year and attended her Oakland rally.

Liccardo, a former Santa Clara County deputy district attorney, said he was impressed by Harris’ work with him and other mayors on under-the-radar issues like improving emergency warning systems. Harris will be the best candidate to balance progressive policies with appeals to moderate voters, he argued: “If this is just a contest to see who can race faster to the left, the Democratic Party will be headed for defeat in 2020.”

Harris might not be the only Californian in the race for the White House: East Bay Rep. Eric Swalwell is also considering a run, and spent this past weekend meeting activists across northeast Iowa, his 17th trip to the state since the beginning of 2017.

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