Harris closes in on VP pick with announcement expected Tuesday

Vice President Harris is nearing a decision on her running mate, with an official announcement expected early Tuesday ahead of an evening rally in Philadelphia.

Harris spent the weekend interviewing finalists to join her on the ticket, including Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro (D), Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz (D) and Sen. Mark Kelly (D-Ariz.). The campaign is expected to announce the choice in a video, as first reported by Politico, though a decision could leak sooner.

Reuters reported Harris has narrowed the field to Shapiro and Walz.

Tuesday’s reveal will conclude a frenzied search that took place under unusual circumstances, with Harris and her team having roughly two weeks to vet, interview and select a running mate after President Biden ended his candidacy about two weeks ago. 

The Harris campaign did not respond to a request for comment on the announcement or the vice president’s thinking on the decision.

Harris’s team sent vetting materials to several contenders, and the list of potential running mates has narrowed in recent days. In addition to Shapiro, Walz and Kelly, Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear (D) and Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg have also been in the mix.

Former Attorney General Eric Holder, whose firm has led the vetting process, was spotted entering Harris’s residence at the Naval Observatory on Sunday.

Harris on Monday huddled with staff and met with President Biden and national security officials in the Situation Room to discuss the latest in the Middle East amid concerns of an Iranian strike against Israel.

President Biden in 2020 announced Harris as his running mate via an email to supporters before the two appeared together in Delaware.

This time around, Harris will follow her announcement with a five-day, seven-state campaign blitz alongside her running mate. The two will appear together in Philadelphia on Tuesday night for a rally before spending the next four days traveling to Wisconsin, Michigan, North Carolina, Georgia, Arizona and Nevada.

Democratic sources said the decision will come down to a mixture of factors, including whom Harris feels she would work well with on a personal level, and who has the experience to step in and help govern if elected.

There is also the question of the political map and whether her running mate can help Harris get to the 270 electoral votes needed to win the presidency.

“No one’s voting for the VP, but I don’t think there’s any question that Shapiro could help her in Pennsylvania, and that’s obviously a critical state,” said one Republican operative. “Writ large, is he particularly helpful? No. But in Pennsylvania, and that’s a must-win state, he might be worth a point or two, which coincidentally is what you need to win.” 

Democratic donors, lawmakers and other officials have spent the final hours before Harris announces her decision lobbying for or against certain candidates.

Kelly sparked speculation he was no longer in the mix after a post on the social platform X said his mission is “serving Arizonans.” A spokesperson said the post, which was later deleted, was “not news.”

A group of Minnesota organizers circulated a memo titled “The Case for Governor Tim Walz for Vice President.”

Politico reported that aides to Sen. John Fetterman (D-Pa.) reached out to Harris’s team to express concerns about Shapiro. 

The Pennsylvania governor has faced a barrage of criticism in recent days over his stance on Israel as well as his response to pro-Palestinian protests following the Oct. 7 attacks on Israel last year. 

Shapiro’s defenders have suggested antisemitism has played a role in some of the broadsides against the governor as his stock has risen.

United Auto Workers President Shawn Fain said Sunday on “Face the Nation” that his preferred pick would be either Beshear or Walz.

“But ultimately, look, I mean, Vice President Harris has to pick who she’s most comfortable with, you know, because it’s her running mate, and it’s who she’s going to be serving with,” Fain said on CBS. “So, you know, we, you know, that’s who we believe would be best for labor and for working class people.”