USA Today became the latest publication to snub Vice President Kamala Harris with a non-endorsement in the 2024 presidential election.
Lark-Marie Antón, a spokesperson for USA Today confirmed to the Daily Beast that the publication had decided not to endorse either Harris or former President Donald Trump in the presidential election, noting that the publication believes “America’s future is decided locally.”
The outlet’s decision to not endorse Harris comes years after it “broke tradition in urging” its readers not to vote for Trump in the 2016 presidential election, and went on to endorse President Joe Biden in the 2020 presidential election, writing that it “unanimously supports the election of Joe Biden.”
“Why are we doing this?” Anton said in a statement. “Because we believe America’s future is decided locally—one race at a time. And with more than 200 publications across the nation, our public service is to provide readers with the facts that matter and the trusted information they need to make informed decisions.”
The Daily Beast noted that USA Today “has a circulation of 132,640 print subscribers and has millions of more readers online,” adding that it was the “flagship brand for over 200 local newspapers” throughout the United States.
Other publications such as the Los Angeles Times, the hometown newspaper of Harris, and the Washington Post have also recently announced that they would not be issuing an endorsement of a presidential candidate in the election.
The LA Times revealed it would not be endorsing a presidential candidate, despite having previously endorsed Biden, former President Barack Obama, and former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton.
In an opinion piece, William Lewis, a publisher and chief executive officer for the Post wrote that the publication would “not be making an endorsement of a presidential candidate” in this election or “any future presidential election”:
The Washington Post will not be making an endorsement of a presidential candidate in this election. Nor in any future presidential election. We are returning to our roots of not endorsing presidential candidates.
The non-endorsements of Harris from the news publications come as she has already faced a non-endorsement from the Teamsters Union, which represents over one million union members, despite polling showing that nearly 60 percent of its union members support Trump, while 34 percent support Harris.