Vice President Kamala Harris on Monday received the endorsement of both Nashville’s current mayor, Freddie O’Connell, as well as former Mayor Megan Barry, who resigned in 2018 after it was revealed she used public funds and resources to facilitate an affair with her bodyguard.
The endorsements came after President Joe Biden on Sunday confirmed he will no longer see the Democratic Party’s nomination, then later endorsed Harris to lead the Democrats against former President Donald Trump in November.
Both the endorsements by O’Connell and Barry were announced by the Democratic Mayors Association (DMA) as part of a press release that included endorsements from more than 270 current and former mayors.
A statement attributed to the organizations claims each of the mayors “are fully confident” Harris will “continue the momentum and legacy that President Joe Biden created.”
The DMA described Harris as Biden’s “partner,” and further declared Harris “is more than ready to lead our country,” before committing to supporting “her vision of delivering opportunity for all Americans.”
After leaving office, Barry later had her criminal record expunged, and is currently seeking the Democratic Party’s nomination to challenge U.S. Representative Mark Green (R-TN-07).
“I own everything I did,” said Barry when announcing her decision to reenter politics. “I take absolute responsibility.”
Meanwhile, O’Connell has created a transit referendum as the first major objective of his administration. Despite being declared illegal by Nashville Tea Party founder Ben Cunningham, the Nashville Metro Council determined the proposal is fit to go before voters in November.
The endorsements by O’Connell and Barry came just one day after the Tennessee Democratic Party announced its delegation to the 2024 Democratic National Convention voted to unanimously support Harris, after all 77 delegates were initially pledged to support Biden.
That announcement, in turn, came within hours of Biden declaring he intends to “stand down” and “focus solely on fulfilling my duties as President for the remainder of my term.”
Biden later confirmed he wants Democrats to choose Harris to succeed him at the Democratic National Convention, which begins on August 19.
“I want to offer my full support and endorsement for Kamala to be the nominee of our party this year.” Biden added, “it’s time to come together and beat Trump.”
In Trump’s own statement posted to Truth Social, the former president claimed Biden was “never” fit to serve as president, and said he was buoyed to the White House “by lies, Fake News, and not leaving his Basement” during the 2020 election.
“We will suffer greatly because of his presidency, but we will remedy the damage he has done very quickly,” wrote Trump.
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Tom Pappert is the lead reporter for The Tennessee Star, and also reports for The Pennsylvania Daily Star and The Arizona Sun Times. Follow Tom on X/Twitter. Email tips to [email protected].
Photo “Freddy O’Connell” by Freddie O’Connell, Mayor of Metropolitan Nashville & Davidson County. Photo “Megan Berry” by Megan Barry. Photo “Kamala Harris” by Vice President Kamala Harris. Background Photo “Democratic Mayors Association” by Democratic Mayors.
