Kamala Harris at risk of losing Judiciary Committee spot

Sen. Kamala Harris (D-Calif.) is at risk of potentially losing her seat on the Judiciary Committee as Senate leadership prepares to negotiate the makeup of the committees heading into next year.

Because Harris is the least senior Democratic member on the high-profile panel and Republicans gained seats in the November midterms, the potential 2020 White House contender could, but is not guaranteed to, lose her seat.

{mosads}Lily Adams, a spokeswoman for Harris, told The Washington Post that Harris told Senate Minority Leader Charles Schumer (D-N.Y.) that she wants to stay on the committee next year. Schumer, in a statement to the publication, said they were working to keep her on the panel.

Harris joined the Judiciary Committee in January after the resignation of Sen. Al Franken (D-Minn.) and Sen. Doug Jones (D-Ala.) was sworn in, giving Democrats an additional seat in the Senate.

The panel has provided her a high-profile perch into some of the biggest Trump administration fights, including the battle over Supreme Court Justice Brett Kavanaugh and Trump’s circuit and district court picks.

She is one of two African-American senators on the panel and one of four female members, each of whom are Democrats.

Whether Harris loses her seat depends on multiple factors, none of which have been decided yet.

Other, more senior, members of the committee could decide to leave the panel for other committees, where Democrats will have vacancies including the Finance Committee and the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee.

And Schumer and Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) still need to negotiate the size and ratios of the Senate committees. Democrats are expected to approve their committee assignments by a resolution in January.

A spokesman for McConnell declined to comment on what the make-up of the Judiciary Committee will be next year, noting that negotiations over committee ratios hadn’t yet begun.

-Megan Keller contributed.