Harris punted on a question about the ballot initiative in comments to reporters while campaigning in the battleground state of Michigan. She also confirmed, two days before Election Day, that she had “just filled out” her mail-in ballot and it was “on its way to California.”
“I am not going to talk about the vote on that. Because honestly it’s the Sunday before the election and I don’t intend to create an endorsement one way or another around it," said Harris, a former San Francisco district attorney, California attorney general and U.S. senator before she was elected vice president in 2020.
The decision by the Democratic nominee for president not to publicly stake out a position on the high-profile initiative could leave her open to criticism from Republican Donald Trump that she is being soft on crime and from some left-leaning voters who would like to see her speak out forcefully against what they perceive as draconian anticrime efforts.
The initiative, if passed, would make the crime of shoplifting a felony for repeat offenders and increase penalties for some drug charges, including those involving the synthetic opioid fentanyl. It also would give judges the authority to order people with multiple drug charges to get treatment.
Proponents said the initiative is necessary to close loopholes in existing laws that have made it challenging for law enforcement to punish shoplifters and drug dealers.
