Harris communications director set to leave post

Jamal Simmons, Vice President Harris’s communications director, will soon leave his position, a source familiar with the matter told The Hill on Friday.

Simmons’s wife accepted a position in New York and their family will move there “in the near future,” according to an email from Harris’s chief of staff, Lorraine Voles, that was obtained by The Hill.

Simmons, a longtime Democratic communications aide, joined Harris’s staff early this year after a rocky first year for the vice president, which included a rash of negative headlines and departures of senior communications staff.

“I knew Jamal has young children and was concerned about time away from them, but I also knew he could help me steady the ship. Because of his deep respect for the Vice President, he agreed to come on board for a year,” Voles said.

Politico first reported on Simmons’s departure, including a statement from him that said it “has been an honor and a privilege” to work for Harris.

Simmons, a Michigan native, previously worked at Hill.TV. He was an aide to former Sen. Bob Graham (D-Fla.), 2004 Democratic presidential candidate Wesley Clark and former Rep. Carolyn Cheeks Kilpatrick (D-Mich.).

Voles said in her email she is “working with the Communications team to determine next organizational steps.”