Harris beefs up campaign staff with Obama veterans

Multiple former senior campaign staffers for former President Obama are joining Vice President Harris’s campaign as she reshapes the organization following President Biden’s decision to end his candidacy.

The Harris campaign said it is retaining the leadership that ran Biden’s campaign until he dropped out roughly two weeks ago, with Jen O’Malley Dillon continuing to serve as the campaign chair and reporting directly to Harris. But there are several new hires and others who are getting expanded portfolios that reflect how Harris is making her election bid her own as she becomes the party’s nominee.

David Plouffe, who worked as a strategist on Obama’s 2008 and 2012 bids, will join the Harris campaign as a senior adviser. A source familiar with the matter said Plouffe would end his consulting work with TikTok and his podcast he’d started with former Trump adviser Kellyanne Conway as he joins the Harris campaign.

Stephanie Cutter, who served as Obama’s deputy campaign manager in 2012, will join the Harris campaign as a strategic adviser.

Others joining or taking on expanded roles in the Harris campaign include Mitch Stewart, who led Obama’s grassroots efforts, and David Binder, who oversaw Obama’s public research operation.

Jennifer Palmieri, who did a stint as communications director in the Obama White House and worked on Hillary Clinton's 2016 campaign, will join the Harris campaign as a senior adviser to second gentleman Doug Emhoff.

The campaign said Julie Chavez Rodriguez will continue in her role as campaign manager, and she will focus more on the sun belt states of Arizona and Nevada, as well as Latino voters. Polling has shown Harris is more competitive in those states than Biden was against Trump.

Politico first reported on Plouffe joining the Harris campaign. The Washington Post first reported on additional staffing changes at the Harris campaign.

The reshuffling and additions in the campaign come as Harris has built momentum in the less than two weeks since Biden said he would not seek reelection and backed her as the next Democratic nominee.

Polling has shown a tightening race between Harris and Trump, though the vice president has stressed in public appearances that she views herself as the underdog in the race.

The Harris campaign announced Friday it raised $310 million in July, including more than $200 million in the week after Harris announced she would run for the presidency.