Vice President Kamala Harris has been dealt a blow by a key newspaper in her home state of California after the editorial board of The Los Angeles Times was reportedly blocked from endorsing her by owner Patrick Soon-Shiong.
Executive Editor Terry Tang told the board earlier this month that the paper would not be allowed to issue an endorsement for president, according to a Tuesday report from Semafor that cites “two people familiar with the situation.” Soon-Shiong, a South African American medical doctor and billionaire entrepreneur who has owned the paper since 2018, reportedly made the decision.
The Los Angeles Times has endorsed the Democratic candidate for president in every previous election since 2008, although it had issued no presidential endorsements for several decades up to that point. The editorial board had reportedly been “preparing” to endorse Harris when the decision to block the endorsement was made.
Soon-Shiong previously blocked the board from backing Senator Elizabeth Warren in the 2020 Democratic presidential primaries, although the paper was eventually allowed to endorse President Joe Biden over former President Donald Trump in that year’s general election.
Vice President Kamala Harris speaks in Brookfield, Wisconsin, on October 21. The Los Angeles Times was reportedly blocked from endorsing Harris by its billionaire owner earlier this month.
Scott Olson
This is a developing story and will be updated as more information becomes available.
