SC’s Jaime Harrison to be new DNC chair, becoming 2nd South Carolinian to hold title
South Carolina’s Jaime Harrison, who set fundraising records in his unsuccessful Senate bid against Lindsey Graham, will be the next chairman of the Democratic National Committee, becoming the second South Carolinian to hold the title after the late Don Fowler.
The New York Times was the first to report President-elect Joe Biden’s plan to name Harrison to the post.
As of press time, the Biden transition had not issued a formal statement to confirm the news.
But Harrison’s selection was among the least surprising news Thursday in South Carolina and national political circles.
“It is not surprising, and the reason it’s not surprising is that it seemed to be a consensus: Jaime would be such a good chair. He has held all the jobs up to that,” said Carol Fowler, a DNC member who also served as the South Carolina Democratic Party chairwoman.
“He knows so much about that job and he wants it, which is important. We have had chairs, usually appointed by a sitting president, who really didn’t understand the job when they got in it. DNC members are aware of that, and they don’t want that to happen again.”
Harrison’s name has been at the top lists of those with clear interest in the job and he has been a frontrunner for the position after he lost his Senate race in November, shattering state and national records after he raised more than $130 million against Graham.
The Columbia resident also has a good relationship with Biden and Vice President-elect Kamala Harris, who first challenged Biden in South Carolina’s Democratic presidential primary. Shortly after his election loss, Harrison told McClatchy that Harris called him.
“She was just calling to check on me,” he told McClatchy. “... They are two amazing people, and both of them call to check in on me.”
He also fielded a call from Biden.
“Not even an hour, literally, I conceded the race, I was driving back home and my phone rang, and this is vice president, now president-elect, and he said, ‘Jamie, I’m proud of you. You ran a heck of a race,’” Harrison said. “And he says, ‘South Carolina is a hard state. But I’m proud of you and what you were able to do.’ And he said, ‘We’re gonna need some good people. So I may call you again.’ And I said, ‘Well, Mr. Vice President, I look forward to the call.’”
What is likely to have sealed the deal, however, is Harrison’s direct relationship with House Majority Whip Jim Clyburn, whose endorsement for Biden helped is credited with helping Biden win the White House.
Harrison, who worked for Clyburn, currently serves as an associate chairman and senior counselor to the DNC.
He also formerly ran South Carolina’s Democratic Party.
“I’ve known Jaime Harrison for years,” Clyburn tweeted from his campaign account. “I know his heart, his passion for our Party, his unmatched work ethic — and I commend President-elect Biden on an excellent choice.”
Harrison did not respond to inquiries by press time Thursday.
In a December interview with McClatchy, current DNC chairman Tom Perez was supportive of Harrison.
“I think Jaime would be a very worthy choice. He’s a person of integrity, he knows state parties he obviously knows how to raise money and build those relationships,” Perez said.
The two ran against each other for DNC chair four years ago and got to know each other through that experience, Perez said.
“(And) became very, very fast friends, and when Jaime decided to leave the DNC chair race in 2017, I was honored to have his support, and I’ve been even more honored to have his wise counsel over the course of the last four years as the associate chair of the DNC,” Perez said.
Fowler, widow of the late Don Fowler who died in December, told The State Harrison will be a “new, young face” for the party, is not part of the “good ole boy network.”
“He’s smart. He understands politics and the Washington establishment,” Fowler said. “There’s a push and pull between those two always, but he has always been part of both. My belief is to win elections you have to pay more attention to what’s going on in states than what’s going on in Washington. A lot of those Washington folks have never met a voter.”
Months after he lost his Senate bid to Graham by 10 percentage points, Harrison tapped into his fundraising network and started his Dirt Road PAC, first raising money to help elect Georgia’s two Democratic Senate candidates Jon Ossoff and Raphael Warnock.
Harrison’s PAC also is raising money to help candidates in this year’s Virginia elections.
“Obviously, President-elect Biden has strong confidence in Jaime’s ability. That matters,” Fowler said. “Folks in the White House don’t want to have to babysit the DNC. They want somebody over there who can take charge and do the job and clearly they believe he can do it. Not just the president elect, but others in the White House circle.”
Although Harrison lost by double-digits to Graham despite raising millions, Fowler said she has no concerns.
“Jaime is a good fundraiser, and, hugely important but very different, he won’t be raising to run against Lindsey Graham. He will be raising money to support President Biden and to hold onto the House and Senate and all those elections in two years,” Fowler said.
Perez also told McClatchy that he was “confident” Harrison could build a solid enough infrastructure for the party.
“I’m confident that Joe Biden understands the imperative of doing that, and if it is Jaime Harrison at the helm, I have 100% confidence that we can indeed continue that progress, because we truly are built to last right now,” Perez said.
Among those to congratulate Harrison on his new role, his opponent.
Congratulations to @harrisonjaime for being selected as Chair of the @DNC,” Sen. Graham tweeted. “This is a big honor and I’m confident he will do a good job representing the Democratic cause. Jaime will be a formidable opponent.”
Good luck, he added, “but not too much luck!”
This story was originally published January 14, 2021 at 12:11 PM.
