WASHINGTON – A former astronaut, conservative governor and former political dissident turned Cabinet official. Who will Democratic presidential candidate Kamala Harris pick for vice president?
News of Harris’ nomination for vice president could come as soon as this week, but as he meets with six finalists Saturday and Sunday, it’s not expected until early next week. coming. The Harris campaign has announced a swing state tour with his VP candidate starting Tuesday in Philadelphia.
After entering the race less than two weeks ago after President Joe Biden withdrew, Harris hasn’t had the luxury of the lengthy vetting process that many campaigns carry out. However, he is probably balancing the same factors: who can help him win, who has the same values as him, who will work well with him, who is qualified to enter the presidency when it is necessary.
“This is a decision that is not just a campaign decision,” Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg, who is among those being considered, told CNN last week. “This is a decision that the whole country is ultimately bound by.”
Harris does not have a close relationship with either of the potential candidates. Attorney General Eric Holder, who was seen by White House reporters on Saturday entering Vice President Harris’ residence, and his law firm, Covington & Burling LLP, are conducting an evaluation of a potential partner of Harris.
Along with Buttigieg, Harris is reportedly considering Pennsylvania Governor Josh Shapiro, Sen. Mark Kelly of Arizona, Minnesota Governor Tim Walz, Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker and Gov. Andy Beshear of Kentucky. Here is a list of who is being considered:
Pennsylvania Governor Josh Shapiro
A former attorney like Harris, the 51-year-old Democrat faced former President Donald Trump’s 2020 campaign when he challenged the election results and won.
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He is running in what could be a key position to determine who wins the White House and his blue collar appeal could help Harris in other up for grabs in the Rust Belt like Wisconsin and Michigan. Notably, he narrowly won his 2022 gubernatorial race in a district that Biden had won two years earlier by 0.2 percentage points.
Like all potential vice-presidential candidates for Kamala Harris, Shaprio says Israel has a right to exist, defend itself and supports a two-state solution, but he is the only one elected. If he is elected and the two win, he would be the first Jewish vice president in US history.
Shapiro’s support for school vouchers has made him a sellout to teacher unions and progressives. He has also been criticized for his handling of allegations of sexual harassment against an aide.
Secretary of Transportation Pete Buttigieg
A popular politician, Buttigieg is perhaps the most popular of the potential candidates. At 42 years old, he is also the youngest. Buttigieg served in the Biden Cabinet for all four years, including implementing Biden’s landmark transportation funding bill and handling several national emergencies.
Also:Who is Pete Buttigieg? The Secretary of Transportation is a potential running mate for Harris
The former mayor of South Bend, Ind., portrayed himself as an outspoken Democrat who could talk to Republicans during his failed 2020 presidential bid. He won a landslide victory in Iowa and did well with white, working-class Democrats.
As a longtime Cabinet official and prominent diplomat, he would align the Democratic ticket closer to Biden than any other candidate.
Sen. Mark Kelly from Arizona
An airline pilot. It’s a political act straight out of a movie. Kelly’s two wins in Arizona show his popularity in a state that could play an important role this year. Biden won there in 2020 by less than 11,000 votes.
Kelly, 60, represents a border state and is somewhat of a hawk on immigration and border security, which could deflect one of the Trump campaign’s attack points against Harris. He also cares about gun violence, one of Harris’ key issues. She is married to former Democratic Rep. Gabby Giffords, who can share the powerful story of surviving a gunshot wound to the head during the 2011 mass shooting in Tucson.
Harris and Kelly met in the Senate in the two weeks between his swearing in and becoming vice president, but the connections on Capitol Hill he would bring to the ticket are something no other candidate has. who has it.
His selection as VP could increase control of the Senate, suggesting that it would also affect Harris’ decisions. Arizona’s Democratic governor would nominate a Democratic successor in the short term, but a special election will be called for 2026 to finish out the final years of his term.
Some labor groups have pressured Harris not to nominate Kelly, pointing to his opposition to legislation they say would strengthen union organizing.
Minnesota Governor Tim Walz
Walz, 60, is a National Guard veteran who worked as a high school teacher and football coach. He spent nearly 15 years representing the southern state of Minnesota in Congress before being inaugurated as governor in 2019. It is reported that former Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif.
Perhaps Walz started the viral effort to call Trump and his choice for vice president JD Vance as “weird.”
Also:Who is Tim Walz? What you need to know about the governor who is Harris’ VP pick
He is the only candidate with legal experience and ethics, something that would appeal to Harris. Walz, who takes fun videos with his daughter Hope, gives the impression of a Midwest dad, like Hillary Clinton’s 2016 nominee Tim Kaine. But Walz also doesn’t come from one of the states that Harris should beat.
Illinois Governor JB Pritzker
Billionaire JB Pritzker, heir to the Hyatt Hotel chain, tends to fall further to the left than Harris, which could help him get ahead, though he’s unlikely to need it.
She has led the way on reproductive freedom issues, a centerpiece of the Democrats’ 2024 agenda. Her political advocacy group Think Big America has helped strengthen efforts to introduce and pass proposed constitutional amendments that will guarantee abortion rights in different countries.
Chicago-area top executives recommended Harris in a letter this week citing his experience creating jobs and working across parties.
Illinois is not a battleground state, so he won’t help Harris pick up electoral votes.
Kentucky Governor Andy Beshear
The Democratic governor of the red state can help Harris appeal to independents and independents who are uncomfortable with Trump as the nominee. He won re-election last year in a district that Trump carried by 26 percent in 2020.
Like Minnesota, Illinois and Indiana, Kentucky is not seen as a game in 2024. But a southern governor could help Harris in places like Georgia.
Corrections and Clarifications: This story has been corrected to show Vice President Kamala Harris considers many Jewish Americans as potential allies.
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