Democratic leaders Schumer, Jeffries back Harris for president

Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer and House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries on Tuesday endorsed Vice President Kamala Harris for president.

Harris has emerged as the leading figure to replace President Joe Biden on the Democratic ticket after he announced on Sunday that he would not seek reelection. The endorsement from the top two congressional Democrats comes after she reportedly received the support of enough delegates to formally claim the party nomination.

"When I spoke with her Sunday, she said she wanted the opportunity to win the nomination on her own and to do so from the grassroots up, not top-down. We deeply respected that, Hakeem and I did," Schumer said is a press conference, NBC News reported.

“Now that the process has played out from the grassroots, bottom-up, we are here today to throw our support behind Vice President Kamala Harris," he went on.

As of Tuesday, every sitting Democratic governor, as well as the vast majority of Democratic senators and members of the House, have thrown their support behind Harris, according to the New York Times.

She does not currently face a challenger for the party nomination.