(WASHINGTON) — March For Our Lives, the youth-led organization dedicated to ending gun violence following the 2018 Parkland, Florida, high school shooting, will be endorsing Vice President Kamala Harris in the 2024 election — the first time the organization has ever endorsed a political candidate, and an indicator of the mounting youth support for the vice president.
“As one of the largest youth-led movements in the nation, we are clear-eyed about the challenge ahead, and we believe that Kamala Harris is uniquely suited to meet this moment,” the group said in a news release shared first with ABC News.
The group goes on to say that Harris is the right candidate to meet the political moment the country currently finds itself in.
“We need an ardent defender of democracy, a gun violence prevention champion, and a leader who will listen to young people, give us a seat at the table, and fight for our future. We believe that Kamala Harris is that candidate and the right person to stand up for us and fight for the country we deserve,” the news release read.
The organization’s endorsement of Harris comes as she oversees the White House Office of Gun Violence Prevention and has met regularly with advocates and survivors of gun violence.
In an interview with ABC News, Natalie Fall, executive director of March For Our Lives, said there’s energy brewing from youth voters with Harris now being the presumptive Democratic nominee that wasn’t seen before with President Joe Biden at the top of the ticket. Biden announced Sunday that will not be running for reelection in the 2024 race — instead endorsing Harris for the job.
“We see a lot of energy around Vice President Harris in this election; there’s no denying that. I think everybody’s seeing it right now,” Fall said to ABC News.
“I just think young people in particular didn’t really see themselves represented or reflected in the Biden ticket in the way that they wanted. It’s not to say that President Biden hasn’t had great accomplishments … But I think we need someone who can meet this moment and who is up to the challenge of taking Donald Trump to task and really defeating his effort to erode all of our institutions and our democracy,” she added.
The coveted youth vote is something both Harris and former President Donald Trump will seek as November approaches — especially in an election that’s expected to be a close contest.
ABC News has reached out to the Trump campaign for specifics on their efforts to appeal to youth voters.
Falls told ABC News that March For Our Lives will mobilize young voters to cast ballots for Harris and other down-ballot candidates through door-knocking, phone banking and creative campaigns.
The group’s endorsement comes as youth voters and organizations mobilize behind Harris.
Voters of Tomorrow, a Gen Z-led organization that engages young Americans in politics and government, announced on Sunday their endorsement of Harris and their efforts to mobilize youth voters behind her.
Following their announcement, the group said it raised $125,000 on Sunday — its best fundraising day ever.
“There’s so much authentic excitement surrounding Vice President Harris online and on the ground, and now we’re channeling that into political action,” Jack Lobel, press secretary for Voters of Tomorrow, said to ABC News in an interview.
Lobel said the excitement and energy surrounding Harris’ campaign is something that likely intimidates Trump and his political operation.
“It’s not just memes; it is record-breaking fundraising hauls, tens of thousands of people joining Zoom calls to organize, people talking to their friends about voting, and Voters of Tomorrow are channeling this momentum to ensure we have record youth voter turnout in November,” he said.
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