(PatriotWise.com)- Yet another member of Vice President Kamala Harris’ staff is departing, adding to the already long list of departures from her office.
This time, it’s the VP’s chief of staff who will departing, Tina Flournoy.
Last Thursday, an official at the White House confirmed to multiple media outlets that Flournoy’s replacement will be Lorraine Voles, who originally was brought on board last summer to serve as a senior adviser to the vice president.
Flournoy’s eventual departure and Voles’ ascension up the ladder will happen at some point this spring. The Washington Post first reported this news.
In an email that Flournoy sent to the entire staff of Harris’ office, she wrote:
“It is likely that this news will appear in print today — which means that I will not have the opportunity to share it with each of you myself. I will be eternally grateful to the Vice President for giving me this amazing opportunity.”
Flournoy is well-respected among Democrats and has worked for the party in some fashion for a while now. She worked in former President Bill Clinton’s White House, as well as his re-election campaign and the unsuccessful 2000 campaign for Al Gore.
Voles worked on the Biden transition period, and was brought on board to help Harris with strategic communication. She restructured the entire office last summer following scrutiny regarding major missteps on messaging. A portion of the ire from staff members following those incidents were directed toward Flournoy.
Voles was only supposed to serve on a temporary basis with Harris’ office, but she ended up staying on board. Many staff members have described Voles as critical to the operation, according to a Politico report.
In the email she sent to staff, Flournoy commented on her successor, saying:
“I’ve known Lorraine since the Clinton Administration and she’s been here in this office since August working with all of us. She and I will continue to work with each other and with all of you on the upcoming transition.”
Harris had nice works for Flournoy in a statement her office sent via the White House:
“Tina has been a valued advisor and confidant to me and tremendous leader for the office. From day one, she led our team during a historic first year as we made progress rebuilding our economy here at home and our alliances around the world.”
Flournoy’s departure is just the latest in a long line of staffers and confidants who are no longer standing beside the vice president. The Washington Times reported that along with Flournoy, the deputy chief of staff, Michael Fuchs, will be leaving, too.
The mass exodus began last fall with Ashley Etienne, the former communications director, resigning back in November. Then Harris’ chief spokeswoman, Symone Sanders, departed.
Those two were followed by Vincent Evans in January and Kate Childs Graham in February.
All of these departures continue to paint a bad picture on Harris and how she’s “leading” her office.
