For Reps. Adam Schiff and Barbara Lee, D-Calif., securing support from their well-known colleagues on Capitol Hill and access to their donor networks has been key to their dueling campaigns to succeed Sen. Dianne Feinstein, D-Calif.
But despite fellow Callifornia Democratic Rep. Katie Porter’s cultivated reputation as an adept fundraiser, she hasn’t flashed a similar ability to win the backing of her fellow officials.
Schiff (a prolific fundraiser in his own right -- he ended the 2022 cycle with $20.8 million in his war chest) has gained the support of dozens of high-profile fundraisers and California officials, headlined by former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif. He’s racked up the endorsements of over 20 union organizations in California as well, which sources close to the Schiff campaign say suggests how widely respected he is by both elected office holders and the average California voter.
“We have now more than half, I think close to 60%, of the California House Democrats who have weighed in — which is very unusual — and endorsed my campaign," Schiff in an interview with Spectrum News. "Usually a state delegation will stay out when they have more than one colleague running and I've got two great colleagues running."
“They know my record of getting things done: building an early earthquake warning system for the state; getting up to date textbooks at our schools for the state; spearheading legislation to create a patient bill of rights, or bringing back millions to California to deal with homelessness," he continued. "These elected leaders respected my record of getting things done, of effectiveness.”
Lee, meanwhile, has proudly touted her progressive credentials by collecting endorsements from Rep. Pramila Jayapal, D-Wash., the chair of the Congressional Progressive Caucus, and fellow California Democratic Rep. Ro Khanna, who decided not to pursue the seat himself.
Lee has also earned the support of Mayors Karen Bass of Los Angeles, a former House colleague, and London Breed of San Francisco. All told, Lee has more than 170 endorsements, including members of Congress, California legislators, local leaders and political committees.
A Lee campaign said that while many people were surprised by the amount of support Lee was able to garner from Southern California officials, the congresswoman has strong relationships across the state, including endorsements from five of the state’s eight constitutional officers: California’s Attorney General, Secretary of State, State Controller, State Treasurer and State Superintendent of Public Instruction.
“The support I've received thus far means the world to me,” Lee told Spectrum News in a statement. “I know how to legislate, appropriate, and negotiate with people from each corner of Congress to get things done. My list of endorsements should illustrate that, and I'll continue being an effective legislator as California's next Senator.”
By contrast, Porter’s campaign has slowly announced her endorsements in press releases, with no dedicated page on her campaign site dedicated to listing her backers, unlike Schiff and Lee.
Porter has been endorsed by Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., Huntington Park Mayor Eddie Martinez, and Tustin Mayor Pro-Tem Leticia Clark, among others. When asked by Spectrum News for a comprehensive list of endorsements, Porter’s campaign provided a roster of 17 public endorsements from individuals, unions, and political action committees, headlined by Warren, Porter’s mentor dating back to her law school days. Warren remains her only endorsement by officials within the U.S. House or Senate.
All told, Schiff (with about 200 endorsements) and Lee (more than 170) each have more than 10 times the number of named backers as Porter.
“If someone is having trouble getting endorsements, that can be a sign of a weakness in the campaign that needs to be remedied if that candidate is going to have a good shot,” said William Galston, a senior fellow at the Brookings Institution. “For example, when Donald Trump has already succeeded in getting endorsements from the majority of the Republican representatives in the Florida delegation to the House of Representatives when his principal adversary is the Governor of Florida? That tells you something about [Ron] DeSantis’ failure to build the sorts of relationships that can produce endorsements, and the inability to form relationships is a sign of a specific kind of political weakness.”
One Democratic staffer who spoke to Spectrum News pointed to the night of the 2023 State of the Union: While other members of Congress were traversing the chambers to chat with one another, Porter sat alone. “Who are her allies?” the staffer questioned.
“In comparison to her colleagues, they have been in California politics longer, I wouldn’t be surprised if that plays a role in voters' decisions,” said another Democratic staffer. “New blood is important, but old blood is difficult to compete with.”
Two frequent co-sponsors of Porter’s past legislation, Rep. Mike Levin, D-Calif., and retired Rep. Alan Lowenthal, D-Calif., have endorsed Schiff, rather than Porter. Others have not made endorsements.
“Relationships matter," Galston said. "This could be a sign that other members of the California delegation regard her as being in too much of a hurry, hasn't paid her dues. These are familiar sorts of arguments."
When Porter announced her Senate in January, there were grumblings about her timing. Not only were there complaints that she had barely spent time in the House before announcing her bid for the upper chamber, but that she announced during historic flooding in her home state. A source close to Rep. Adam Schiff, who had yet to announce his bid at the time, remarked to Spectrum News following Porter’s announcement that the Burbank congressman had no plans to announce a Senate run in the midst of a natural disaster, referencing the flooding and catastrophic damage it left in its wake. (Schiff wound up announcing two weeks later.)
Lee and Schiff also spoke to the candidate they are both jockeying to replace, Sen. Dianne Feinstein, about their decision to run before their public announcements. It’s unclear if Porter did so.
There’s also been questions about Porter’s decision to leave her congressional seat in Southern California’s traditionally conservative Orange County, which Republicans are targeting to take back in 2024. But an aide to House Democratic campaigns tells Spectrum News they feel confident that Democrats can hold the seat.
Spectrum News asked the Porter campaign if the Congresswoman has ruled out running again for her House seat, should she fail to take a top-two spot in the primary. The campaign did not respond to that question.
"Katie Porter was elected to Congress just four years ago with the goal of shaking up the status quo and making Washington actually work for real people. That’s exactly what she’s done, and why she’s been endorsed by local and state leaders, progressive groups, and organized labor from across California. It's also why she leads in a majority of polls released to date,” said Porter campaign spokesperson Lindsay Reilly.
Those polls include a University of California, Berkeley Institute of Government Studies poll that measured Porter favorably against Schiff and Lee; two polls released by her campaign, which place her and Schiff at a dead heat; and one released by Lee’s campaign, which sets Porter just ahead of her Democratic colleagues.
The most recent poll, conducted by the Public Policy Institute of California and released this week, showed Porter at 19%, ahead of Schiff and Lee at 16% and 13% respectively. But Schiff says he’s confident in his message resonating with voters, since all the polls are within the margin of error.
“We feel great about it, the polls have been pretty consistent. For the first six months of the campaign, some have me up by two or three, some have Porter up by two or three [percent],” said Schiff. “They're all in the margin of error, and our expectation is that it's likely to stay that way until the fall when people start to really pay attention, when the candidates start to go out in the field with their messages. That's when I think things will begin to change and we're very confident they'll change and increase our advantage considerably.”
While Porter trails in endorsements, she is trying to make up for in campaign cash. At the end of the first quarter of 2023, Porter had nearly $9.5 million on hand in her campaign war chest. In the second quarter, Porter posted $3.2 million, with a reported $10.4 million cash on hand. While she still trails Schiff, who has over $29.5 million in his coffers, she well outpaced Lee who has raised just $2 million in her campaign.
But Galston warns that cash can be deceiving.
“Money can't buy you an election, but it can lose you an election if you don't have enough. And especially in a big, expensive media market like California, where you really can't survive on bare bones, grassroots campaigning, the way you could in a smaller state,” Galston explained. “You need a lot of money, and if you can raise it, or if others who are particularly talented fundraisers can raise it on your behalf, you at least have the means to wage a campaign, wherever you can figure out how to win that campaign is a different matter altogether.”
For now the race, though competitive, remains pleasant. And Schiff says he wants it to stay that way.
“We have lunch together as the California delegation every week, and, you know, certainly it's a little uncomfortable since three of us are competing for the same job. But it's a friendly competition,” admitted Schiff. “In particular, Barbara Lee, and I go way back. We served in the state legislature together, we served on the Appropriations Committee together. So we've worked together for many, many years.”
“We’re doing our part to make sure it stays collegial up through the end of this race, and that we are rivals under the same flag,” he added. “We’re keeping it positive.”