Former US vice president Kamala Harris held a private call with New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani last week and has been holding closed-door meetings with prominent progressive figures, including pro-Palestinian activists, according to an Axios report on Wednesday.
A person familiar with the Harris-Mamdani call told Axios that the call, which took place on Thursday, focused on the future of the Democratic Party and plans for further conversations.
Harris has also reportedly exchanged text messages with Mamdani over the past months, initiating the call after three progressive, Mamdani-backed candidates won New York City primary races.
The wins were some of the latest in a string of leftist victories that have, according to some analysts and party members, caused alarm among moderate and centrist Democrats.
Harris trying to rebuild relationships with progressive leftists
According to Axios, the call and the meetings signal that Harris may be trying to repair and strengthen her relationships with left-wing members of her party in order to lay the groundwork for a 2028 presidential run.
Harris and her team are also seemingly pushing to reconnect with members of the pro-Palestinian Uncommitted National Movement, which was created largely out of opposition to the Biden administration’s policy on the Israel-Hamas War.
During Harris’s 2024 presidential campaign, she reportedly rejected requests for a Palestinian American to speak at the Democratic National Convention, leaving many progressive activists split on their support for the former vice president.
According to the Axios report, Harris met with Uncommitted Movement co-founder Abbas Alawieh last week. Alawieh is now running for a Michigan state Senate seat as a Democrat.
Alawieh told Axios that he requested the private meeting after Harris repeatedly initiated conversation with him. He asserted that he was not speaking on behalf of the Uncommitted Movement during the meeting.
Axios cited Alawieh as saying that during his meeting with Harris, he reiterated his “longstanding position that American tax dollars should never be used to target civilians or destroy entire communities.”
Harris also reportedly spoke with James Zogby, a Democratic National Committee member and vocal pro-Palestinian activist, according to sources familiar with the conversation, Axios reported.
Pro-Palestinian activists remain skeptical of Harris
Meanwhile, some pro-Palestinian voices are skeptical about whether or not Harris would be able to win back left-wing voters. Many progressive leftists stopped supporting her when she did not distance herself from former US president Joe Biden’s pro-Israel position.
Rania Batrice, a progressive strategist and Palestinian American, told Axios that if Harris has actually shifted to a more pro-Palestinian stance, “she has an opportunity to prove it.”
“Why should we trust her now?” Batrice asked, asserting that until Harris proves herself, “skepticism isn’t just understandable, it’s warranted.”
Corinne Baum contributed to this report.
