AUSTIN, Texas — Vice President Kamala Harris landed in Texas late Wednesday afternoon.
The likely Democratic nominee for president will speak Thursday in Houston at the American Federation of Teachers National Convention, after the group recently endorsed Harris to be the Democratic nominee.
Thursday’s stop is one of Harris’ first public appearances since starting her presidential run, four days after President Joe Biden’s July 20 announcement that he is withdrawing from the race.
“Is it a movement or is it a short-term blip?” asked Dr. Brian Smith, a political science professor at St. Edwards University. “That’s going to be all up to Vice President Harris.”
Smith said one draw to Texas is the event’s audience: members of the nation’s second-largest teachers union, which represents more than 1.7 million educators.
“Educators tend to be more on the Democratic side than the Republican side,” Smith said. “One of the main reasons she’s here is trying to craft that speech in front of a favorable audience that she’ll use at the [Democratic National Convention in August] and then into the fall. There’s a lot of trial balloons going on.”
The professor believes the Houston visit is a chance for Harris to connect with a young, diverse population.
“Why not make an appearance in Texas?” Smith said. “If it starts working, then make more. But if not, do it now, rather than when it’s in October.”
The other draw to Texas? Money.
“She’s raised a lot of money, but she’ll blow through that in a couple of weeks," Smith said. “Fundraising, it’s like exercise: you go to the gym once, you’re not in good shape. You have to continually do it.”
Smith said Harris will start trying to build a network in Texas, which could also help down-ballot campaigns like the contest for U.S. Senate between Democratic U.S. Rep. Colin Allred and incumbent Republican U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz.