Following Flurry of Southern Senate Endorsements From Kamala Harris, Arkansas’s Shoffner Noticeably Absent

Today, former Vice President Kamala Harris endorsed Rep. Chris Pappas (D) in his bid for the New Hampshire Senate seat.

It’s the latest endorsement from the former VP, who has also announced support for both Senator Jon Ossoff (D) in Georgia and Democrat Abdul El-Sayed in Michigan. She’s also backed Democratic Senate candidates Roy Cooper in North Carolina, James Talarico in Texas, and Troy Jackson in Maine.

Last week, Kamala Harris also began making endorsements in Arkansas, saying that she will support 2nd Congressional District Democrat candidate Chris Jones against Republican French Hill.

Harris tops the list of potential candidates for the Democrat nomination in 2028, according to an August Rasmussen Reports poll. 37% of likely voters supported Harris, with California Governor Gavin Newsom at 14 percent and New York Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez at 9 percent.

Hallie Shoffner donated to Harris 25 separate times, showing her once-enthusiastic support for the former VP. Harris could also help Shoffner attract national attention, raise money and mobilize Democratic voters. Harris’ move to support Jones also shows that Arkansas is on her mind.

But when Harris visited Arkansas for a state Democratic Party event in April, Shoffner emphasized that her campaign had not arranged the appearance and said she would not attend, setting off a flurry of speculation in the state about Shoffner’s support for and relationship with the former Vice President.

“Under the Biden-Harris administration, inflation hit 9 percent, our military was underfunded, and the federal government sued Arkansas for protecting our kids. Arkansans rejected the Harris agenda, and they don’t want it coming back,” said Senator Tom Cotton.

“As Kamala Harris continues to announce endorsements for high-profile Senate races across the South and elsewhere, Arkansans want to know if Hallie Shoffner is next,” said James Arnold, Cotton campaign spokesman. “Hallie Shoffner once enthusiastically supported Kamala Harris, donating to her an unprecedented 25 times. Has Shoffner rejected Harris’s endorsement, or has she not received one? In either case, Arkansans deserve to know whether Shoffner still supports her party’s leading 2028 candidate.”