Senator Mark Kelly, Presumptive Democratic Presidential Nominee Kamala Harris, Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker (Photo Credit: Public Domain, The White House, and Wikimedia Commons).
Since President Biden’s announcement on Sunday, Vice President Harris has quickly emerged as his most likely successor in the quest to keep the White House blue in November.
In the first 24 hours of her candidacy, Harris raised $81 million, already shattering fundraising records in her efforts to shatter America’s hardest and highest glass ceiling. Moreover, enthusiasm among Democrats and other voters committed to defending our democracy from the virus of Trumpism seems to be higher than at any other point of this campaign cycle, particularly among Black voters.
The Harris campaign is a candidacy full of firsts: The potential first Black woman – and first ever woman – President, not to mention the first president of Asian descent. But this trailblazing candidate has another significant milestone just around the corner: Selecting a running mate.
Who will Vice President Harris pick and why? Let’s take a look at a few of the individuals whose names are trending on various prospective “shortlists.”
- Mark Kelly (Senator – D – Arizona): A veteran and celebrated astronaut who is the husband of the much beloved former Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords, Mark Kelly’s smart centrism and ability to attract swing voters helped him win the Senate seat formerly held by the late Senator John McCain in 2020 and to be elected to a full-term for that seat in 2022, defeating his Republican opponent by a wide margin for such a purple state. If selected, Kelly could help the ticket attract the swing voters needed to succeed in critical battleground states like Arizona – and to fend off Republican attacks on key issues like border security and gun safety reforms.
- Wes Moore (Governor – D- Maryland): Maryland’s first Black Governor — and only the third Black person elected governor of any state — Moore is quickly becoming one of the most renowned rising stars in the Democratic Party. As a result, he is one of the most closely watched political figures in America. While Maryland is traditionally and reliably blue regarding presidential politics, the Senate race there is surprisingly competitive. A Harris-Moore pairing could arguably help secure that Senate seat for Democrats. And a presidential ticket with two Black candidates, one of whom would become the nation’s first Black woman president, the other the first Black male Vice President, would be a groundbreaking turning point for this country, just as a ticket of two women would.
- Josh Shapiro (Governor – D – Pennsylvania): Josh Shapiro handily defeated right-wing extremist and unabashed Donald Trump sycophant Doug Mastriano for the Pennsylvania governorship in 2022 and has since become one of the most closely watched rising stars in the Democratic party and American politics in general. Only the third Jewish governor in Pennsylvania, a Harris-Shapiro pairing would certainly be a dynamic one both in terms of swing state math and the celebration of the diversity that sets our party apart from the “MAGA” Republicans.
- Roy Cooper (Governor – D – North Carolina): Known for his brand of common sense leadership, Roy Cooper is a two-term Democratic governor in a state that Democrats last carried on the presidential level with Barack Obama’s victory there in 2008. A Harris-Cooper ticket could give Democrats a boost in this hotly contested swing state, at the presidential level and down the ballot.
- Andy Beshear (Governor – D – Kentucky): Andy Beshear shook up the typical political conventions in 2019, flipping the governorship to blue in a state that has long been reliably red. And in 2023, he won re-election. While conventional wisdom says that Kentucky will most likely go for Donald Trump in November’s election, a Harris-Beshear ticket could at least pull that race closer. More importantly, Beshear’s demonstrated ability to attract and win independents and swing voters could translate into the critical swing states where the ticket would need to get to 270 electoral votes.
- JB Pritzker (Governor – D – Illinois): Having been a member of the Governor’s team, I may be a bit biased on this one. However, Pritzker emerged during the first (and hopefully only) Trump administration as one of his fiercest challengers at the state level, standing up to the 45th President on everything from his attacks on the immigrant community to reproductive rights and voting rights. A Harris-Pritzker ticket would be a powerful pairing of two leaders who have each proven they are unafraid to stand up to Trump and his agenda – and are ready and willing to prosecute the case against this authoritarian-driven convicted felon. Plus, while Illinois is a reliably blue state at the presidential level, Prtizker’s status as a high-profile governor of a midwestern state could help the ticket carry some of the pivotal neighboring battleground states, like Wisconsin and Michigan.
VP Harris’ choice could be one of these outstanding individuals or someone none of us really anticipated. As someone who managed to export volunteers from DC to Virginia for President Obama’s re-election campaign, I hope that VP Harris is considering a running mate who can boost border state volunteer recruitment. It will be needed.
Either way, I eagerly anticipate the announcement, which, in all likelihood, will happen sometime before the start of the Democratic National Convention on August 19. I am incredibly honored and excited that VP Harris’s historic nomination will become official in our great city.
As Black Americans, this is an incredible moment for our community. And as a nation, this is an important first step in ensuring we continue to move forward, not backward.