Houston Mayor John Whitmire Hasn’t Endorsed Kamala Harris

Houston Mayor John Whitmire does not appear on a list of more than 250 Democratic mayors nationwide who have endorsed Vice President Kamala Harris for president, as she plans to visit Houston on Thursday.

As reported by the Houston Chronicle, Whitmire appears to be missing from the list released Monday by the Democratic Mayors Association, where seven Texas mayors showed their support for Harris. 

“As Mayors, we are the closest to the people and understand better than most that too much is at stake for our communities to endure another Donald Trump presidency,” the association said in a statement. “Our rights, freedoms and very democracy are on the line. With just over 100 days until the election, Democratic mayors remain fully committed to doing everything in our power to continue the momentum and legacy that President Joe Biden created.”

The news of Whitmire’s absence from the list comes as Harris is scheduled to visit Texas on Thursday to address the American Federation of Teachers national convention in Houston.

While Whitmire’s office didn’t tell the Chronicle whether the mayor belongs to the federation, his communications director, Mary Benton, said he was looking forward to visiting with Biden this week.

“Mayor Whitmire is focused on storm recovery following Hurricane Beryl and was making plans to see President Biden in person this week to talk about our storm recovery and needs for future storms,” Benton said. “The president has delivered on FEMA assistance.” 

While Biden’s trip to Houston was canceled due to his COVID-19 diagnosis, he is expected to be in Austin next week.

“He looks forward to visiting with Vice President Harris about her vision for improving major cities including federal funding for homelessness, disaster recovery and other pressing issues,” Benton told the Chronicle. 

Harris is expected to deliver keynote remarks on the closing day of the AFT’s national convention. The federation’s council already endorsed Harris on Sunday.