Inside Katherine Clark's relentless campaign schedule
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House Minority Whip Katherine Clark (D-Mass.) has traveled to two dozen states this cycle as she tries to press her party's advantage on women's issues, Axios has learned.
Why it matters: Clark's travel serves dual roles, her allies tell Axios – helping Democrats win back the House majority and preparing her to step into the majority leader role should they do so.
- "When you go to a member's district, when you see their neighborhood, you meet their constituency, you understand the issues that they're dealing with, that is a bond that will last forever," said Rep. Annie Kuster (D-N.H.).
- "That's why it's so powerful for her to have these relationships, because she knows them. She's met their families, she's been to their homes."
What we're hearing: Clark, the #2 in House Democratic leadership, has focused overwhelmingly on abortion and child care, positioning herself as the party's de facto congressional spokesperson on those issues.
- Clark has so far traveled to 24 states with plans to go to at least another three this month, according to her campaign.
- In addition to stumping for battleground incumbents like Rep. Susan Wild (D-Pa.) and challengers like Maggie Goodlander, she is also campaigning for Vice President Harris in Georgia and North Carolina.
What they're saying: "We did a great roundtable, a very effective roundtable, that got a lot of good publicity in our community," Rep. Greg Stanton (D-Ariz.) told Axios of Clark's visit to his state.
- "The people in the room were the top leaders of this initiative to restore abortion rights in Arizona, and ... they fell in love with Katherine Clark because she is such a powerful spokesperson and a likable person," he added.
- Rep. Jim McGovern (D-Mass.) told Axios: "She understands that if we're going to win the House, we have to get out there and start talking to voters one-on-one."
Zoom out: Several of Clark's allies noted that she has, for years, been in roles within the Democratic Caucus that involve traversing the country campaigning for fellow Democrats – and making friends in the process.
- She was a Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee vice chair for recruitment in 2017 and co-chair of the DCCC's Red to Blue program in 2018, becoming caucus vice chair in 2019 and assistant speaker in 2021.
- "Whip Clark has been traveling the country for years now. I mean, she was critically important in the recruitment of candidates in the election cycle that I got elected in 2018," said Rep. Lori Trahan (D-Mass.).
- Trahan added: "She builds enduring relationships with people coming to Congress. When we touch down in Washington, she helps those members in the early days."
The bottom line: "She has a very positive brand ... and people want to be affiliated with that, and she can grow the brand as she's doing this travel," said Kuster.
- "If we win, or when we win, in November, she'll be number 4 in the government," Kuster added. "So, I think traveling the country ... is a great experience for her, to really have her finger on the pulse."
