PES meets with Democrats on US campaign trail

A delegation from the Party of European Socialists (PES) attended a series of campaign events and bilateral meetings in the United States with representatives of the Democrats in the run-up to the presidential election. European socialists and democrats are following closely the election campaign in the US, confident that a victory for Kamala Harris and Tim Walz will bring better US-EU relationships and a more peaceful world.

PES Deputy Secretaries General Saar van Bueren and Yonnec Polet, as well as Vice President Kati Piri, led the delegation, which also included PD Italy former Minister for the South and Cohesion and current PD MP and International Secretary Peppe Provenzano, GroenLinks-PvdA Netherlands MP Habtamu de Hoop and PvdA Netherlands International Secretary Ties Huis in 't Veld.

The mission began in Washington DC, where colleagues met with the National Democratic Institute (NDI) to discuss NDI's work to support democracies worldwide and counter threats to their future. The meeting also featured discussions about NDI's work in Central and Eastern Europe.

Members of the PES delegation attended various events organised by the Democrat campaign, during which the PES gained valuable insight into the work of the Harris campaign and the US political landscape from experts on the ground.

PES Deputy Secretaries General Saar van Bueren and Yonnec Polet, and PES Vice President Kati Piri met with Senator Bernie Sanders' Legislative Director, Billy Gendell, and later engaged in discussions with the Centre for American Progress. The discussions touched upon US climate policy, President Biden's legacy, and US foreign policy, amongst other topics. They exchanged views with Johan Hassel, Senior Fellow and Director of Global Progress Action.

In Philadelphia PA, the delegation visited a Democratic canvassing station on the campaign trail and later attended the 'vota con orgullo' (Vote with Pride) rally with Democratic Congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez.

Later that week, the delegation travelled to New York City NY, and had the privilege of meeting with United Nations Under-Secretary-General for Policy Executive Office of the Secretary-General Guy Ryder to exchange on international cooperation and effective multilateralism. This included a discussion on the Pact for the Future that was adopted in September, with Under-Secretary-General Ryder underlining the important role PES President Stefan Löfven played throughout the process.

Further meetings - focused on social rights, campaign strategy, and polling - were held in New York with State Senator of New York and Chair of the Finance Committee Liz Krueger, and in Washington DC with Vice President of Impact Research Luke Martin.

The delegation will spend election night at the official watch party of Vice-President Kamala Harris at Howard University in Washington DC.

European socialists and democrats wish good luck to the democratic candidates Kamala Harris and Tim Walz at Tuesday's decisive election.