Andrea Stewart-Cousins is excited about Kamala Harris’ historic candidacy

In 2019, state Senate Majority Leader Andrea Stewart-Cousins made history when she became the first Black woman – and first woman in general – to lead the state Senate. Now, she’s excited to support Vice President Kamala Harris, another Black woman looking to make history in the Oval Office. 

In an exclusive interview with City & State, Stewart-Cousins offered an enthusiastic endorsement of Harris, who has become the Democratic heir apparent after President Joe Biden shocked the nation by dropping out of the presidential race on Sunday. Prominent Democrats in New York and across the country have coalesced around Harris ahead of next month’s Democratic National Convention. 

Stewart-Cousins joins Gov. Kathy Hochul, state Democratic Party Chair Jay Jacobs, Assembly Speaker Carl Heastie, state Attorney General Letitia James, New York City Mayor Eric Adams and a slew of other elected officials at all levels of government who have announced their support of Harris. Candidates in swing congressional districts, including Rep. Pat Ryan in the Hudson Valley and John Avlon on Long Island, have also endorsed the vice president. 

Stewart-Cousins told City & State that she believes Harris’ candidacy will reenergize Democrats across the state, and she looks forward to doing everything in her power to help elect the nation’s first Black woman president. This interview has been edited for length and clarity. 

It’s an exciting day.

I’m very excited. 

I take it that means that you are endorsing Harris?

Absolutely. Without hesitation. She's amazingly accomplished. She is just the right messenger at the right time to take on the former President Trump and his 2025 agenda. And to continue the work that President Biden has done, that President Biden has been able to push forward. She is absolutely the right person to carry it forward. 

Were you one of the 40,000 Black women on the Zoom call for Harris last night?

No, I was traveling, so I was not on that call.

That’s unfortunate. I heard that it was originally capped at 1,000 people, but that was hit immediately, and they needed to call the Zoom CEO to get more people on.

I had friends who could not get on. I mean, everybody who wanted to get on that call, was not on that call. 

It was quite the event from my understanding.

Yeah, it was impossible for everyone to get on. But I'm glad. I think that is the kind of reaction and call to action that you're going to see across the nation. There's so much at stake. And we need to coalesce quickly and get behind our candidate and the message that ultimately will be amplified by Vice President Harris, in a way where people understand that democracy, rights, everything that we fought for is on the line. And people are energized around that. And we will win. I'm very excited about it. 

President Biden’s polling numbers in New York have been pretty low. Do you think that Vice President Harris energizes voters better in New York, especially in these crucial swing districts?

I think so, I do. (She is) somebody who is very, very clear on what has to be done, and she obviously knows what the issues are. And she's obviously been a target for the radical right for the past four years. So they have, I'm sure – between what they've been managing to get out there around the president and the vice president – she’ll have some work to do. 

But I do believe that women will be energized. I think people who will clearly hear the message of the difference between the two governing philosophies will understand how much is at stake and they will be reenergized. And I just think it's another dynamic and I think we in New York needed kind of a shift in the dynamism of the race. And she will bring that. She's highly competent, highly qualified. And absolutely, again, ready to move us forward. And that's what we need because our other option is going backwards. 

When you first saw the news about Biden and the almost immediate coalescing around Harris, what was your initial reaction, especially since you may find yourself in similar historic positions? What was that like for you personally to see?

It was just so exciting because – it screams the promise of America. And we are talking about, again, dueling visions. One that is not willing to understand that America is America because of who we are and the opportunities that are available. So her candidacy, again, not only reemphasizes that but inspires people all over to continue to work hard, to continue to pursue that education, pursue your dream. And in this great country, there is an opportunity that, you know, some little girl or some little boy, whomever, could actually lead this nation. The prospect is certainly exciting. We are long overdue for breaking that ultimate feeling. And if there's ever a time, this is it.

Will you campaign for Harris, and what will that look like? I know you’re also chair of the Democratic Legislative Campaign Committee.

I’ve had the opportunity to meet and work with the vice president over the years. I will certainly, first and foremost, obviously, I will be campaigning for my members who are in races, and I have my own race. I always believe that we certainly have to take care of our home base. 

That being said, the purpose of the Democratic Legislative Campaign Committee is, again, to create blue states, so that we can continue to be a firewall when policies on the national level do the kinds of things that the former president is trying to do. So it is also our interest to make sure that there are as many blue legislative chambers as possible. Which, again, coincides with ideals and the vision of the president, as well as Vice President Harris. So it is going to be very, very easy, again, to carry that message, not only in our own state, but with the Democratic Legislative Campaign Committee. And campaigning vigorously to not only make history, but continue to preserve the history of our democracy and our American dream.

Gov. Hochul had been a very staunch supporter of President Biden, as were several members of our congressional delegation. I don’t believe I’ve seen strong messaging one way or the other from you prior to now, so where was your mind on the president’s candidacy prior to him dropping out?

I was with him until he made the decision that he was not going to continue in the race, because there was an extreme amount of respect that I have for who he is, what he’s done. I did put out a statement, when I was asked, certainly as chair of the DLCC, as well as in my role, that I was with President Biden. But with the continued swirl and the back and forth, every moment that we spend trying to figure out our direction are moments that are not spent really highlighting the issues and getting people really to understand what this election is about, on many, many levels. 

So, yes, I was definitely a supporter and as a delegate. But I think once that decision was made by the President to shift focus – I just hope that collectively we will be able to do that. I personally will do everything I can to make sure that Vice President Harris becomes president. 

There definitely seems to be a lot of excitement. Best fundraising day since 2020 for Democrats after the announcement.

It truly is exciting. I think that we can, as Barack Obama says, we should be fired up and ready to go. I think this is going to be a whole different kind of race. And I think you will see a lot of people who were maybe not sure they wanted to be engaged, fully engaged, because there's going to be an opportunity.

And you’re a Biden delegate, does this mean that you’re pledging your support for Harris as the nominee at the convention?

Oh yes, sure.