Vice President Harris is on track to pick someone to join her on the Democratic presidential ticket within the coming days, after a light-speed launch to her campaign.
Democrats have rallied around Harris, including some of the top contenders to become her running mate. Among the names most often floated: Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro, Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz and Arizona Sen. Mark Kelly.
Harris’s campaign reportedly requested vetting materials from several potential running mates last week, including that trio.
Shapiro, a former prosecutor like Harris, and Kelly, an astronaut with a strict track record on immigration, have won statewide races in crucial battleground states, while Walz has emerged as a no-nonsense voice of support for the vice president in the fight against former President Trump and his running mate Ohio Sen. JD Vance.
Harris and whoever she picks will hit the ground running with a battleground blitz next week starting in Pennsylvania on Tuesday.
Adding to the time crunch for Harris, the Democratic National Convention kicks off in Chicago on Aug. 19. Democrats plan to hold a virtual roll call to confirm Harris’s nomination by next week, along with her running mate.
A recent poll found Democrats are split over which candidate she should pick with Shapiro and Kelly leading the pack of possible choices, with 15 percent and 14 percent support, respectively. Respondents also rated California Gov. Gavin Newsom and Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer highly.
The Associated Press reported that Harris’s team, led by former Attorney General Eric Holder, has been combing over documents from the potential running mates, and Harris is testing personal compatibility and getting to know them better.
The top candidates aren’t waiting for the news before they get started courting voters on a national scale. Shapiro, Walz and Kelly have spent recent days holding campaign events and appearing on television to campaign for Harris.
Many of the names that have been floated as top contenders are white men, like Kelly, Shapiro and Walz, which is presumed to be an effort to compliment her status as a Black and Asian American woman.
It’s not clear what specific parameters Harris has set for the person who ultimately could be one heartbeat from the presidency, but she’s been through the process before – just four years ago when Biden vetted her.
Biden reportedly was looking for a full partner in the job and someone who he felt compatible with. He vowed he would pick a female running mate — likely a Black woman, and Congressional Black Caucus leaders rallied around Harris.
According to The New York Times, “No other candidate scored as highly with Mr. Biden’s selection committee on so many of their core criteria for choosing a running mate, including her ability to help Mr. Biden win in November, her strength as a debater, her qualifications for governing and the racial diversity she would bring to the ticket.”
Biden, having also been a vice president and gone through the selection process himself, stressed he was not looking for someone to automatically cosign his thoughts.
The Times also reported that he didn’t want the veepstakes to become a reality show, where candidates were kicked off the list one-by-one during a public process.
Meanwhile, Trump did compare his selection process to the reality TV show “The Apprentice,” which he hosted for 14 seasons from 2004 to 2014.
“It’s like a highly sophisticated version of ‘The Apprentice’,” Trump said during a radio interview earlier this month before announcing Vance as his pick.
