Colorado Democratic party backs Kamala Harris for presidential nominee

DENVER ( KDVR ) — An overwhelming 95% of the Colorado Democratic Party’s Central Committee voted in support of Vice President Kamala Harris for presidential nominee, the party announced Tuesday.

Of Colorado’s 87 delegates to the Democratic National Convention, 95% pledged to support her nomination.

Over 300 delegates and State Central Committee members gathered Monday evening to discuss Harris and the party’s goals for the future, according to a Colorado Democratic Party release.

“Kamala Harris is the best and she is very, well , well qualified. A VP that can be President and I think she is ready to take the reigns. So, it’s just important that Democrats go in united as we into the convention,” Rep. Naquetta Ricks, DNC  Standing Committee Member, told FOX31 political reporter Gabrielle Franklin.

Colorado Democratic Party Chair Shad Murib said the party is “united, fired up” for the Harris campaign.

“Already, Vice President Harris has won endorsements from our entire federal delegation and statewide Democrats, as well as elected Democrats at all levels, including grassroots leaders and activists across the state,” Murib said in a release. “There’s no one better prepared to prosecute the case against convicted felon Donald Trump than Vice President Harris, and our endorsement makes it clear that Colorado Democrats are ready to elect her this fall.”

On Monday night, The Associated Press reported that Harris had 2,214 delegates who had either told reporters or announced publicly that they planned to support Harris at the convention — far exceeding the 1,976 benchmark set by Democratic National Committee rules. On Monday, 37 of Colorado’s delegates to the Democratic National Convention told The AP that they were backing Harris.

“She’s also asked for this pledged support which basically means that when the delegates go in to this virtual roll call, which we are planning for here shortly, that they have actually pledged their support now to then give their delegate support to the Vice President to then secure the nomination,” FOX31 political analyst Andy Boian said.

That virtual roll call will take place before Aug. 7 to avoid legal challenges.

“The way it’s been in the past is, ‘Hey, we know who your nominee is, we understand, we’ll bypass this and secure your nominee at your convention.’ This time around, because of the way this has happened with the Democratic Party and President Biden. We’ve been told that we will be sued if we don’t do this. So, we need to do a virtual roll call and have a nominee by the 7th of August,” Boian said.

On July 15, Colorado’s Republican National Convention delegation cast all 37 of its votes for former President Donald Trump. Just before the delegate roll call, Ohio U.S. Sen. JD Vance was announced to be Trump’s running mate. Trump’s nomination also followed an attempt on his life at a rally in Pennsylvania, resulting in the former president wearing an ear bandage to the Republican National Convention — which spurred supporters to sport the same.

Harris’ campaign follows repeated calls for President Joe Biden to step back and not run for a second term as president. He said he would not accept the Democratic Party’s nomination on Sunday, later endorsing Harris for president.

Harris has not announced a running mate but only announced her campaign Sunday. That hasn’t stopped speculation, including some speculation that the vice president candidate could be Gov. Jared Polis. The Democratic governor told CNN on Monday that if polling supports it, he’d be interested.

“If they do the polling and it turns out that they need a 49-year-old, balding, gay Jew from Boulder, Colorado, they’ve got my number,” Polis said.

The Democratic National Convention is scheduled for Monday, Aug. 19 through Thursday, Aug. 22 in Chicago.

For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to FOX31 Denver.