Blinken indicates he would decline any offer to stay on under Harris

PORT-AU-PRINCE, Haiti — Secretary of State Antony Blinken made clear Thursday that he does not intend to continue into another Democratic administration, saying that he looks forward to having a lot more time with his kids very soon.

The acknowledgment — not a surprise, but still the first public acknowledgment of his plans — is another indicator that a Kamala Harris presidency would probably have a different foreign policy team from that of President Joe Biden. Harris has indicated she would generally continue Biden’s approach to international affairs, but she has also struck a more critical tone toward the Israeli government and civilian deaths in Gaza.

Asked at a news conference whether he would serve in a Harris administration if requested, Blinken said: “As to my own future, all I’m looking at right now is the balance of this administration and January. And I can tell you from having spent some time over the last week on … break with my kids, I will relish having a lot more time with them.”

Top U.S. diplomats rarely serve more than a single term, partly because of the grueling nature of the job. Blinken — who has two young children — spends about half of his time on the road, bouncing from time zone to time zone.

Although he has served in foreign policy roles across multiple Democratic administrations, Blinken has worked most closely over his career with Biden, who hired him when he was the senior Democrat on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee and took him along when he became vice president.