Longtime NBA player LeBron James has endorsed Kamala Harris for president, taking to social media to state that the “choice is clear” in the 2024 election.
James took to social media on Thursday, October 31, to post a clip of Donald Trump employing extreme and violent rhetoric. The video also highlighted a clip of comedian Tony Hinchcliffe from Trump’s Madison Square Garden rally cracking a racist joke about he and a Black friend carving “watermelons together.”
LeBron James Shares Video
James captioned the video, “What are we even talking about here?? When I think about my kids and my family and how they will grow up, the choice is clear to me. VOTE KAMALA HARRIS!!!”
In an October 31 article about the endorsement, writer Tania Ganguli of the New York Times notes that the endorsement was expected.
“Mr. James greeted Ms. Harris over the summer when the United States men’s basketball team was in Las Vegas preparing for the Summer Olympics in Paris, where the Americans won the gold medal,” Ganguli wrote. “Steve Kerr, the Olympic team’s coach and the head coach of the Golden State Warriors, later spoke at the Democratic National Convention.”
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She continued, “Mr. James’s Democratic leanings are longstanding. In 2008, he hosted a free concert by Jay-Z in Cleveland in support of Barack Obama’s successful bid for the presidency. He campaigned for Hillary Clinton in 2016, introducing her at a rally in Ohio, and wrote an opinion essay supporting her campaign.”
It’s also worth noting that James sent a message when he played for the Cleveland Cavaliers in 2017, and the Warriors beat his team in the N.B.A. finals. It was when President Trump was in office.
“Presidents traditionally invite championship-winning teams to the White House to celebrate their victories, but Mr. Curry said he would skip because of his distaste for Mr. Trump. Mr. Trump fired back by saying the invitation had been ‘withdrawn,'” the New York Times article noted, adding, “Mr. James’ response went viral. ‘U bum @StephenCurry30 already said he ain’t going!” he wrote. “So therefore ain’t no invite. Going to White House was a great honor until you showed up!”
James’ endorsement is the latest high-profile endorsement of Harris. She has picked up support and endorsements from BeyoncĂ©, Taylor Swift, Bad Bunny and Arnold Schwarzenegger, among others.
LeBron James’ History in Politics
CNN notes that James was also very involved in the last presidential election, so this isn’t his first time getting involved with politics. He founded “More Than A Vote — a voting rights organization focused on combatting voter suppression — along with other athletes. The organization then recruited several thousand poll workers in primarily Black electoral districts and helped Floridians struggling to pay off outstanding fees and fines associated with their felony convictions so they could register to vote.”
CNN adds, “Following President Joe Biden’s victory in 2020, which James celebrated, his organization focused on the wave of GOP-led bills aimed at restricting voter access and launched a campaign to mobilize Black voters in off-year and municipal elections.”