CHICAGO — Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer said Tuesday he is committed to giving Democratic presidential candidate Kamala Harris a Democratic-led Senate if she wins the White House in November.
“She will lead America forward, but she needs a Democratic majority in the Senate,” he said in a speech on the second night of the Democratic National Convention.
Schumer told delegates he was confident Democrats would expand their slim majority in the Senate because of candidates who are running, such as U.S. Reps. Ruben Gallego of Arizona and Angela Alsobrooks of Maryland.
“People, listen to this,” Schumer told a packed United Center. “More than half of our candidates are people of color. We’re making the Senate look like America.”
Schumer praised Harris for her work in the Senate, where she represented California, and most recently for her tiebreaking vote for Senate Democrats in the vice presidential race.
“I saw a leader who was afraid of nothing,” he said of Harris’ time in the Senate.
Because Democratic senators hold a slim majority in the upper chamber, Harris has often been the deciding vote on legislation, as well as judicial nominations. Last year, she broke the record for tiebreaking votes.
“She was the best partner that Senate Democrats could have asked for,” he said.
And in a gesture of unity, independent Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders, who has sometimes been at odds with Democrats, spoke after Schumer.
“We are setting the stage for Kamala Harris to be our next president,” Sanders said.
Sanders has forceful support among the working class, and in 2016, hundreds of his supporters protested the Democratic presidential nomination of Hillary Clinton during the Democratic National Convention in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.
“Let us move forward to build the nation we know we can become,” Sanders said.
During his speech, Sanders praised the Biden-Harris administration for its handling of the coronavirus crisis and passing key legislation that has helped states and local governments rebuild with funding from the American Rescue Plan Act.
Sanders said he would be ecstatic to work with Harris on a range of issues, including strengthening public education, raising the minimum wage, passing legislation to give workers the right to unionize, raising teacher pay and taking on corporate giants like the pharmaceutical, technology and agriculture sectors.
“Too many of our fellow Americans struggle every day to survive,” Sanders said.
He also called for an immediate ceasefire in the Gaza Strip, where, according to Palestinian health authorities, more than 40,000 Palestinians have been killed in the Israel-Hamas war.
“We must end this terrible war in Gaza,” he said, to a standing ovation from the crowd.
Senate Control
Michigan Sen. Gary Peters appeared before delegates earlier that night and noted that Harris and her vice presidential running mate, Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz, have middle-class roots and upbringings similar to those of many Americans.
Peters, the leader of the Democratic wing of the U.S. Senate campaign, said Monday that he is not only confident Harris can win the presidential election, but also that The Senate will remain under Democratic control.
Democrats have no room for error in the upcoming Senate elections, especially with the retirement of West Virginia independent Sen. Joe Manchin III. Sens. Jon Tester of Montana and Sherrod Brown of Ohio face particularly complex reelection races in states Trump won in 2020.
However, Schumer in his speech expressed confidence in incumbent senators such as Brown, Tester and Jacky Rosen of Nevada.
“Our candidates are implementing all the great things we did in 2021 and 2022,” he said.
Schumer also criticized former President Donald Trump’s 2024 vice presidential candidate, Ohio Senator J.D. Vance, and his Senate tenure. Schumer criticized Vance for missed the vote on expanding the child tax credit.
The Democratic National Convention (DNC) held its second night with a ceremony to read the Harris and Walz nominations. Top Democrats also appeared, including former President Barack Obama, former First Lady Michelle Obama, Patti LaBelle, and Common.
Surprise appearance by rapper Lil Jon during the ceremonial roll call when Georgia delegates voted. The official vote took place earlier this month.
Harris, who campaigned in Wisconsin on Tuesday, had several of her speeches included in the United Center stadium. She thanked delegates for the ceremonial roll call and told them she would meet with them Thursday for her acceptance speech.
“This is a people-driven campaign,” she said. “Together we will forge a new path forward, a future of freedom.”
Illinois Senator Discusses In Vitro Fertilization
Illinois Democratic Senator Tammy Duckworth told delegates she takes access to reproductive health care personally, noting that the only reason her daughters were born was to access in vitro fertilization.
She warned that Republicans would not stop restricting access to abortion but “then they will tackle in vitro fertilization.”
Since the conservative Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade two years ago, Democrats have campaigned to restore reproductive rights.
Harris has promised that if elected, she would restore the constitutional right to abortion, but passing such legislation would be an uphill battle. Democrats would need to control the House of Representatives, but they would also need 60 votes to clear the filibuster threshold in the Senate.
Regardless, Schumer told reporters after his speech that restoring abortion access is a key issue for Democrats.
“Republicans know this is a lost cause for them,” he said. “And when we get a majority in the House, in the Senate and in the presidency, we will explore, you know, we will explore how we can preserve a woman’s right to choose and preserve reproductive freedom.”
Jacob Fischler contributed to this article.
