Former congresswoman Katie Porter (D.) announced Tuesday that she is running next year for governor of California, touting herself as a leader who has "the backbone to fight for what's right." Her spokesman told the New York Times, however, that she will drop out of the race if Kamala Harris decides to run.
"What California needs now is a little bit of hope and a whole lot of grit, fresh blood and new ideas, and leaders with the backbone to fight for what's right," Porter says in her launch video. "That's why I'm running for governor."
"As governor, I won't ever back down when Trump hurts Californians," Porter goes on.
But the former congresswoman will back down from the race if Harris decides to run, a spokesman told the Times on the same day that Porter launched her campaign. Other Democratic contenders have also indicated they would step aside should Harris enter, according to Politico.
While Harris has not yet officially entered the race, she is "seriously considering" a run and will announce her plans by the end of the summer, according to alleged "Kamala Harris expert" Eugene Daniels.
Porter, who rose to prominence in 2018 thanks to her anti-Trump rhetoric, has long faced scrutiny over her behavior. Her ex-husband asserted in divorce filings that she subjected him to verbal and physical abuse, once dumping a pot of boiling mashed potatoes on his head. Former staffers, meanwhile, "accused the congresswoman of berating them, making racist comments, and firing employees for contracting the coronavirus," the Washington Free Beacon reported.
Porter lost the 2024 Senate election to fellow Democrat Adam Schiff, raising $28 million just to come in third place. She claimed following her loss that she had had to face an "onslaught of billionaires spending millions to rig this election."