WASHINGTON — Vice President Kamala Harris has a lot of options for her next act — including possible runs for governor of California in 2026 and president in 2028 — but writing a book may be first up, according to six people familiar with internal discussions about her future.
Two of the people said that Harris, who will find herself out of elected office for the first time in more than two decades on Monday, has already decided to write a book. The others said the topic is under discussion.
Thrust into the 2024 presidential campaign when President Joe Biden withdrew from the race in July, Harris quickly locked down the Democratic Party’s nomination but lost the general election to former President Donald Trump. Since conceding to Trump, Harris has said little publicly about her 107-day sprint to try to save the presidency for her party. Not only could her written take recount the past, it could help shape her future.
“Kamala Harris is poised to land the biggest book deal of any vice president in history,” said Keith Urbahn, president and co-founder of the literary agency Javelin. “But the real question isn’t the advance — it’s whether the book can redefine her for 2028.”
Urbahn said Harris has an opportunity to “get personal,” acknowledge where she and the Democratic Party misread the sentiments of the electorate, and potentially reach out to a broader audience than her base.
“There’s a version of this book that is full of platitudes but safe, and then there’s a version that reinvents her to lead a Democratic Party in need of rebuilding,” he said. “She gets a payday either way, but only the latter gets her a second shot at the presidency.”
Many of Harris’ advisers think she has a full-length story to tell, and that voters will want to read it.
“I think she owes it to people to write a book,” one Harris confidant said.
Ashley Etienne, who previously worked as Harris’ vice presidential communications director, said that if Harris does write a book, she plans to buy copies of it for “all the women” in her life, including her daughter.
“The vice president is a historic figure with an incredible story to tell. From her leadership to tackle COVID, rebuild the economy and to protect the rights of women in this nation,” Etienne said. “People love her — 70 plus million in fact. And I can imagine they’re desperate for her to pull back the curtain on her groundbreaking journey from a child of immigrants to commanding the mantle of the most powerful country in the world.”
Harris’ last book, “The Truths We Hold,” released in conjunction with her first presidential campaign, landed at No. 1 on the New York Times bestseller list in 2019. At the same time, she released a children’s picture book, called “Superheroes are Everywhere.” And in 2010, she wrote a memoir called “Smart on Crime.”
