Pelosi Announces 2024 Senate Endorsement Of Rep. Adam Schiff, If Feinstein Doesn’t Run

In an e-mail announcement on Thursday, Congresswoman and former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) said that she would be backing fellow Congressman Adam Schiff (D-CA) in his bid for the Senate next year, as long as current Senator Dianne Feinstein (D-CA) opts not to run for reelection.

The race for Feinstein’s seat in 2024 received nationwide attention last month following Congresswoman Katie Porter’s (D-CA) decision to announce her campaign to run for Senator. Throughout the state, candidates, potential endorsers, and campaign contributors quickly scrambled due to the early announcement. Congressmembers Schiff and Barbara Lee (D-CA) both announced their intentions to run within a week of Porter, with other candidates, such as Congressman Ro Khanna (D-CA), Attorney General Rob Bonta, U.S. Secretary of Health and Human Services Xavier Becerra, and San Francisco Mayor London Breed being amongst other rumored candidates.

The scramble also trickled down to 2024 House races, as both Schiff’s seat and Porter’s seat will now be wide open in 2024. In Porter’s swing 47th District, an intense 3-way election has already formed, with former Congressman Harley Rouda (D), 2022 near-winner Scott Baugh (R), and state Senator Dave Min (D-Irvine) all having set up campaigns in the past few weeks. Schiff’s 30th District seat, has had a similar run of candidates, with the only difference being that his LA District is seen as more of a Democratic lock. As of Thursday, Assemblywoman Laura Friedman (D-North Hollywood), LA Board of Education member Nick Melvoin, state Senator Anthony Portantino (D-La Canada Flintridge), and actor Ben Savage have all filed for a run in the district next year.

Endorsements have also flooded in. Senator Elizabeth Warren (D-MA) has officially backed Porter, while Schiff has managed to grab over a dozen Congressional Democrats from the California delegation. Early polls even seem to favor a Schiff-Porter race in November 2024, with an early poll on the 2024 June Primary showing Port and Schiff winning with a 30%-29% one-two finish. Other potential candidates, such as Lee and Khanna, failed to crack above the 10% line.

But the big question looming over the race is if Feinstein, who will be 91 next year, will run in 2024. Questions about her health have plagued her in the past few years, with many calling on her to step down in 2024. She has not yet made an official announcement if she will run, with Feinstein likely to say for sure sometime during the Spring. There have been some signs that she may not, such as Schiff previously saying that he wouldn’t run unless he had her blessing, but as of Thursday, there has been nothing concrete to indicate one way or another.

Pelosi backs Schiff, but only if Feinstein doesn’t run next year

It was this uncertainty and respect for Feinstein that played a huge part in Pelosi’s announcement Thursday. Pelosi’s endorsement can go a long way for candidates, especially for Southern Californian candidates like Schiff and Porter who are lesser known in the Bay Area. Pelosi ultimately chose to endorse Schiff, whom Pelosi has been serving with for decades, on Thursday. But dampening that endorsement was that Pelosi would only back him if Feinstein decides not to run in 2024. If she does, Pelosi would back her instead.

“If Senator Feinstein decides to seek re-election, she has my whole-hearted support,” said Pelosi in an e-mail on Thursday. “If she decides not to run, I will be supporting House Intelligence Committee Chair Adam Schiff, who knows well the nexus between a strong Democracy and a strong economy. In his service in the House, he has focused on strengthening our Democracy with justice and on building an economy that works for all.”

Many commenters noted on Thursday that Pelosi’s backing usually comes with not only more big-name endorsements, but also many political contributors and guaranteed Bay Area votes. As this would be a significant advantage for Schiff in a race against Porter and other potential candidates, the uncertainty of Feinstein is now adding to the frustrations of many involved in the different campaigns.

“This is a crucial endorsement for Schiff,” Jorge Rivera, a staffer on four House campaigns in the past eight years in Southern California, told the Globe on Thursday. “Current and former House members really help out on campaigns. They’re familiar faces with a lot of voters still liking them and them willing to go all over a district giving speeches for your candidate.”

“When you get someone like Pelosi, that’s a big name with a lot of big contributors coming along with her. Not to mention that any time she gives a campaign speech news cameras will be there. You get access to her political machine. You’re not guaranteed to win, but you have a much easier experience.”

“So when you lose that sort of endorsement, especially an unusual one like this one where it’s based on a contingency of someone else not running, it can screw with your plans. Projected contributions go way down, and you suddenly have a lot more ground to cover. Pelosi is huge for Schiff, but if Feinstein does run, it puts the election back in her hand then.”

More endorsements are expected to be given to candidates in the coming months, with other candidates also likely to join the race soon.