The possibility of a meeting between US Vice President Kamala Harris and UK Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer ahead of the upcoming US presidential election appears increasingly unlikely, according to Downing Street. With the election day just 12 days away, time is running short for Starmer to meet with both US presidential candidates, a goal he previously expressed.
Starmer’s Earlier Meeting with Trump
Sir Keir Starmer had previously met with former President Donald Trump during a visit to New York in September, coinciding with the UN General Assembly attended by UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak. Starmer had expressed his intention to meet with both key figures in the US presidential race, stating it would be “very good” to engage with both before Americans head to the polls on November 5.
Harris Meeting Unlikely
However, with Starmer currently in Samoa for a Commonwealth summit and election day fast approaching, Downing Street acknowledged that the opportunity for a meeting between the Labour leader and Vice President Harris is unlikely to materialize. Time constraints and scheduling conflicts are the primary reasons cited for the anticipated missed opportunity.
The meeting would have provided Starmer with a chance to engage with the Democratic leadership and gain further insight into US political dynamics as the election looms. Nonetheless, with just under two weeks remaining before election day, both Starmer’s international commitments and Harris’s busy schedule appear to have made such a meeting logistically difficult.
Future Implications
The missed opportunity for a face-to-face meeting with Kamala Harris might limit Starmer’s engagement with the broader spectrum of US political leadership ahead of a crucial election that holds significant global implications. However, Starmer’s earlier encounter with Donald Trump still places him in a unique position, having directly interacted with one of the leading figures in the US political landscape.
As both the US election and global geopolitical landscape continue to evolve, any potential future meetings between Starmer and US political leaders will likely remain of great interest.