Vice President Kamala Harris will appear at campaign events in multiple states next week with her yet-to-be-named running mate.
The presumptive Democratic presidential nominee is expected to announce her pick for vice president in the coming days. The shortlist is rumored to include Kentucky Governor Andy Beshear, Pennsylvania Governor Josh Shapiro, Senator Mark Kelly of Arizona, Minnesota Governor Tim Walz and Secretary of Transportation Pete Buttigieg. Shapiro and Kelly both represent swing states while Beshear is the only Democratic governor in the South.
According to NBC News.Unlike the others, Beshear’s red-hued state is most likely not in play in 2024. The two-term red-state governor, though, won re-election last year in a state [President Donald Trump] won by more than 20 percentage points in 2020. He also won by 22 percentage points in the eastern Kentucky county that Vance referenced in his Republican National Convention speech, a county Trump claimed by 52 points in 2020. In a region where Democrats are still fighting for votes, he is seen as someone with a bipartisan reputation who can serve as a counterbalance to [Ohio Senator J.D. Vance].
At least two rumored contenders — Governor Roy Cooper of North Carolina and Michigan Governor Gretchen Whitmer – withdrew from consideration.
“I strongly support Vice President Harris’ campaign for President. I know she’s going to win and I was honored to be considered for this role,” Cooper said in a statement on July 29, per The Hill.
“This just wasn’t the right time for North Carolina and for me to potentially be on a national ticket,” he added. “As I’ve said from the beginning, she has an outstanding list of people from which to choose, and we’ll all work to make sure she wins.”
Whitmer is also supporting Harris and currently serves as the co-chair of the campaign. She said on July 22 that she would not seek the vice presidency.
“No, I’m not planning to go anywhere,” Whitmer said, per MLive. “I’m not leaving Michigan. I’m proud to be the governor of Michigan. … I’m not going anywhere.”
A coalition of 50 progressive leaders sent a letter to Harris stressing the significance of her running mate choice.
“The correct vice presidential candidate can build on the amazing momentum you have established or set us back, especially among hard-to-reach, young, and disenfranchised voters,” the group wrote. “With the compressed timeline ahead of us to defeat the Trump-Vance-MAGA threat, we simply cannot afford any setbacks. Just as your selection by President Biden in 2020 strengthened the ticket, it is imperative that the person standing beside you in 2024 brings all of us together.”
The group highlighted Waltz and Beshear as “persuasive advocates for core Democratic values” that would not marginalize “any of the communities that we must engage in order to win the electoral college.” The group also believes Waltz and Beshear would help the party make inroads with “rural communities that have felt left behind in recent elections.”
The co-signers steered Harris away from Shapiro, arguing he “has made too many controversial policy decisions on issues such as school choice and the environment to be the consensus voice our nation needs right now.”
The Democratic Nation Committee will hold a virtual roll call on Aug. 7, where Harris is expected to be formally nominated. The party’s national convention will take place on Aug. 19 to 22.
“Shapiro will be an unnecessary obstacle to grassroots organizing, fundraising, and excitement,” the group warned. “Your campaign simply cannot afford to make a mistake in this crucial decision.”
Despite the impending deadline, Harris told reporters in Atlanta on July 30 that she has not yet picked her running mate.
