IIn a shocking turn of events on Sunday, US President Joe Biden announced he was ending his bid for a second term and instead endorsing Vice President Kamala Harris for the Democratic nomination. The decision means that Harris, who is of Black and South Asian descent, could be the first Black woman to lead a major party ticket.
It also means Harris will have to choose a running mate. Democratic leadership will want Harris to pick someone who can win over undecided voters and encourage the party’s core base to show up at the polls.
Here are some of the possible candidates Harris could choose.
Pennsylvania Governor Josh Shapiro
Josh Shapiro, 51, won his 2022 gubernatorial race in the swing state by just 700,000 votes. any non-incumbent gubernatorial candidate of Pennsylvania since 1946and appears to have been extraordinarily popular among rural and urban Pennsylvanians. Shapiro gained national attention after overseeing rapid repairs to Philadelphia’s I-95 overpass, which collapsed last year and reopened just 12 days later.
The governor has pro-Israel record which could help him with some constituencies and alienate him with others, including voters in Michigan, a swing state with a large Arab-American community for whom Gaza remains a central issue. Shapiro would be the first Jewish vice presidential candidate since Joe Lieberman’s unsuccessful bid in 2000.
Shapiro pledged to support Harris as the nominee on Sunday and called on Democrats to come together to support her. “I’ve known Kamala Harris for nearly two decades – we’ve both been prosecutors, we’ve both defended the rule of law, we’ve both fought for the people and delivered results,” Shapiro said in a statement about X. “Kamala Harris is a patriot worthy of our support.”
See more information: Here’s Who Has Supported Kamala Harris for President So Far
Arizona Senator Mark Kelly
Mark Kelly, 60, began his Navy career as an aviator before being selected by NASA as an astronaut. In 2011, his wife, then-Congresswoman Gabriel Giffords, was shot in the head during a shooting outside a supermarket. As a result, Giffords has permanent disabilities.
Kelly and Giffords have become advocates for universal background checks and other gun control measures. In 2020, Kelly successfully ran in a special election in Arizona How a Democrat to Unseat the Incumbent Republican Senator Martha McSally.
Known for its moderate and bipartisan rhetoricKelly could be a valuable asset in helping deliver Arizona to the Democrats.
“I couldn’t be more confident that Vice President @KamalaHarris is the right person to defeat Donald Trump and lead our country into the future,” Kelly wrote on X. “She has my support for the nomination, and Gabby and I We will do everything we can to elect you President of the United States.”
Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg
Pete Buttigieg, 42, rose to national prominence when he ran for president in 2020 as mayor of South Bend, Indiana. A Rhodes Scholar who studied at Harvard and Oxford, he began his career as a management consultantt for McKinsey.
Buttigieg has served as secretary of transportation in Biden’s cabinet since 2021. He was the first openly gay candidate in history to win the presidential primary and the first openly gay cabinet secretary confirmed by the Senate.
North Carolina Governor Roy Cooper
Roy Cooper, 67, is another prominent Democratic governor of a critical swing state. Like Harris, he previously served as the state’s attorney general. The governor could help win over undecided voters, as he won both elections in North Carolina in 2016 and 2020, despite Trump winning the state in both election cycles.
“Kamala Harris should be the next president,” he wrote on X. “I’ve known @VP since our days as AGs, and she has what it takes to defeat Donald Trump and lead our country with care and integrity.”
Kentucky Governor Andy Beshear
Andy Beshear, 46, is another Southern Democrat with a track record of winning votes in a red state. He won his 2023 re-election campaign despite Trump winning Kentucky by approximately 30 percentage points in 2020, largely by running a campaign that attacked his opponent for supporting a near-total ban on abortion in the state. Abortion is likely to be a critical issue in the 2024 election, and Harris is expected to make reproductive rights and abortion access central to her campaign.
Asked Monday on MSNBC’s “Morning Joe” about being a potential running mate, Beshear said: “The only way I would consider anything other than my current job is if I believed I could further help my people and help this country. ”.
Illinois Governor JB Pritzker
The 59-year-old billionaire governor of Illinois has self-financed his entire political career. JB Pritzker comes from one of the richest families in the USAowner of the Hyatt hotel chain.
Pritzker’s wealth could be a campaign financial asset. Records in late June showed the Trump campaign with more money in hand than Biden’s team. However, donations poured in after Biden dropped out on Sunday, with Harris raising some US$50 million through popular donations.
Pritzker endorsed Harris for the nomination in a statement posted on on Monday morning, ending speculation that he would run at the top of the ticket. He said he spoke with Harris and explained why he didn’t immediately support her, as some of the other candidates did on Sunday. “When I spoke with Vice President Harris, I told her that President Biden’s selfless decision was a genuine surprise,” Pritzker said. “It’s important to pay attention to what’s next for the Democratic Party and the country, which is why I spent hours yesterday talking to other leaders in our Party, getting and giving input on the path to victory in November. unique role we play here in Illinois as hosts of the Democratic National Convention.”
He praised Harris for her work on abortion rights, calling her a “defender of the American values we hold dear.”
Colorado Governor Jared Polis
Jared Polis, 49, has served as governor of Colorado since 2019 and was recently elected president of the nonpartisan National Governors Association. Like other potential candidates, he would bring a sense of bipartisan appeal to the ticket. Polis secured robust electoral victories in 2018 and 2022, underscoring his appeal across party lines in a traditionally blue state.
However, opting for Polis may not strategically bolster Democratic prospects in crucial swing states, a potential disadvantage compared to other candidates. Polis is the nation’s first openly gay governor, previously served in Congress for a decade and was a member of the Colorado State Board of Education.
Maryland Governor Wes Moore
At 45 years old, Wes Moore is often seen as a rising star in Democratic circles. He made history in 2023 as Maryland’s first black governor, leveraging a multifaceted career that includes acclaimed authorship, a Rhodes Scholarship, military service and stewardship of the Robin Hood Foundation.
However, his limited term as governor and Maryland’s secure Democratic electoral landscape could present strategic challenges for a Harris-led ticket looking to secure swing states. Despite these considerations, Moore’s charisma and broad appeal could make him a compelling candidate to galvanize the Democratic base, potentially offering a new narrative of leadership and diversity in national politics.
See more information: Where does Wes Moore come from?
He endorsed Harris for the Democratic presidential nomination on Monday morning. “Vice President Harris has the experience, track record, vision and wisdom to unify the country,” Moore said in a statement published on X. “The morning the Francis Scott Key Bridge collapsed, one of the first calls I received was from Vice President Harris. President Harris. President Harris. She made it clear that the entire nation stood by Maryland as we faced one of the worst tragedies in our state’s history. In that moment, she demonstrated not only her powers of leadership, but also her powers of empathy.
California Governor Gavin Newsom
Gavin Newsom, 56, worked extensively with Harris during his time as California attorney general. He has been involved in state politics for decades, serving as mayor of San Francisco from 2004 to 2011 and lieutenant governor of California from 2011 to 2019.
However, there are questions about his popularity within his party and whether he can attract undecided voters. The governor was nearly recalled by California voters in 2021 and he came under fire after reports that he dined at an exclusive restaurant that flouted his own government’s pandemic restrictions.
Choosing Newsom as Harris’ running mate could also be legally difficult, as they are both from California. The 12th Amendment says state electors “vote by ballot for president and vice president, one of whom, at least, shall not be an inhabitant of the same state with themselves.”
Newsom supported Harris, writing in X that “no one is better at prosecuting the case against Donald Trump’s dark vision.”
Michigan Governor Gretchen Whitmer
Gretchen Whitmer, 52, is another governor of a key swing state whose name has often been mentioned as a candidate for president or vice president. However, when asked by 6 News on Monday, if she was prepared to take on the vice presidency if offered, Whitmer responded, “No, I’m not going anywhere.” She supported Harris earlier in the day and later said she is “proud to serve as co-chair of her campaign.”
“In Vice President Harris, Michigan voters have a candidate they can count on to lower their costs, protect their freedoms, and build an economy that works for working people,” Whitmer said in a post on X. “Donald Trump is a convicted criminal who fuels violence, overturned Roe and bankrupted our economy. We can’t let him get anywhere near Vice President Harris, you have my full support.
While it seems unlikely that Whitmer will join the ticket, she could be gearing up for a possible presidential run in 2028. During her tenure as governor of Michigan, she became known for her focus on infrastructure and ran a campaign to “fix the damn roads ”. ” during her successful 2018 gubernatorial campaign. She has been a prominent supporter of abortion rights and has referred to herself as a “progressive.”
This story originally appeared on Time.com read the full story
