Vice President Kamala Harris‘s campaign has tapped Yohannes Abraham for an integral role in a presidential transition team.
Abraham is the U.S. ambassador to the Association of Southeast Asian Nations and is based in Indonesia. A U.S. official confirmed that Abraham will conclude his tenure in Jakarta in the coming days, per NBC News.
He is expected to lead a small team tasked with putting in place operations for Harris to begin building an administration after the election if she wins against former President Donald Trump.
A State Department spokesperson told the outlet that Abraham had spent his two years as an ambassador working to bolster the U.S.’s relationship with nations in southeast Asia. Before that, he was chief of staff of the National Security Council and oversaw the White House Situation Room.
He was President Joe Biden’s 2020 transition executive director, but also worked closely with Harris.
Abraham’s appointment comes as the General Services Administration reportedly prepares to speak with the Harris and Trump campaigns during the presidential transition process. A spokesperson for the GSA said the agency will send a letter on Tuesday offering its services to both transition teams.
Harris’s team would have to accept the offer in writing and execute a memo of understanding in order to get office space in Washington, D.C., and administrative support to do their work. Federal law requires Sept. 1 to be the deadline for GSA to enter into formal agreements with presidential transition teams.
Trump’s transition team will be led by Linda McMahon, who led the Small Business Administration under the Republican former president. She is the wife of WWE co-founder Vince McMahon. Howard Lutnick, CEO of the financial services firm Cantor Fitzgerald, will also help.
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Abraham worked on both of former President Barack Obama‘s presidential campaigns and served in his administration for the Office of Public Engagement.
Abraham will reportedly not work on policies or make decisions on personnel until after Election Day.
