They’ve been described as frenemies, allies and something in between — a pair of Democratic stars from San Francisco whose parallel ascents always seemed at risk of colliding.

As Vice President Kamala Harris traveled to California to rally for Gov. Gavin Newsom on Wednesday, their political interests appear to have aligned.

A Newsom defeat in next week’s recall election would pose a significant problem for the Biden administration. It would put a Republican governor in charge of the biggest and arguably most progressive state — demoralizing Democrats ahead of the 2022 midterm elections when their party already faces gale-force headwinds. And it would allow that Republican governor to appoint a GOP replacement if Sen. Dianne Feinstein, the San Francisco Democrat who is 88, retires or falls ill.