Former Vice President Kamala Harris has recorded a robocall for U.S. Rep. Jasmine Crockett to turn out voters for the Dallas congresswoman in Tuesday’s hard-fought Democratic primary for U.S. Senate.
“Texas has the chance to send a fighter like Jasmine Crockett to the United States Senate,” Harris says in the call, which was first shared with The Texas Tribune. “Jasmine has the experience and record to hold Donald Trump and his billionaire cronies accountable.”
The call gives Crockett a boost from one of her party’s biggest stars in the homestretch of her primary against state Rep. James Talarico, D-Austin. They are vying to win the Democratic nomination for the seat currently held by Republican Sen. John Cornyn, who is in his own hotly contested primary.
“It’s time to turn Texas blue,” Harris says at the end of the call, which comes on the last day of early voting for the primary. Harris encourages voters to cast an early ballot Friday or in person Tuesday on Election Day.
Crockett was a national co-chair of Harris’ presidential campaign, spoke at the 2024 Democratic National Convention and has long described Harris as a friend and mentor. Crockett has talked about consulting Harris before deciding to make a late entry into the Senate race in December. Harris served in the Senate from 2017 to 2021, until her elevation to the vice presidency.
“I wasn’t going to make this decision without having some real conversations with the vice president,” Crockett said in a December podcast interview. “And obviously, she didn’t just run in one state, she’s run in a lot of states, right? And to this day, she still remains a mentor and a friend and an auntie of sorts.”
“Talking to the vice president, it’s tough because she looks at me like I am family,” Crockett added. “So there’s been all the conversations.”
Harris has only gotten involved in two other primaries since 2024, both also involving friends with whom she has worked on the campaign or in the White House.
Talarico also has fans in the upper echelons of the party. Former President Barack Obama called Talarico “a really talented young man” during a podcast interview in October, a clip that Talarico’s campaign has promoted more recently.
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