The Democrats are in the spotlight as Harris picks her own VP : NPR

Democrats are coalescing around Vice President Harris’s presidential bid, and now eyes are on who she could pick as her running mate, if she secures the party’s nomination.

In the weeks since President Biden’s poor debate performance, which pushed many on the left to amplify calls for him to drop out of the race, a handful of Democrats have been seen as potential candidates to run in his place.

Now, some of those same names are being floated as potential vice-presidential candidates.

Notably, most of these potential picks are under 60 years old, which could provide a strikingly different Democratic ticket than just last week. But the potential veeps have a different kind of challenge: low national name recognition and minimal time to change that.

Here’s who may be considered:

Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro

Governor of Pennsylvania Josh Shapiro prepares to speak during a television interview before U.S. President Joe Biden takes the stage during a campaign event at Montgomery County Community College January 5, 2024 in Blue Bell, Pennsylvania.

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Shapiro leads a state that is crucial to this election – as it was in 2020. Both Republicans and Democrats know the stakes here, as the state has seen more political ads than any other this cycle.

Shapiro is 51, fairly popular, and the first-term governor delivered a sizable victory in 2022. He trounced his Republican competitor by nearly 15 percentage points.

The Trump campaign has put a lot of time and money into campaigning in Pennsylvania, knowing it has to pull out one of the bricks from Democrats’ so-called Blue Wall states of Pennsylvania, Michigan or Wisconsin. To this point, Trump has had a narrow polling advantage in the state.

But, while Shapiro may be a household name in his state, he, like many others on this list, is not well known nationally. So, while he has a reputation as a competent governor and former state attorney general, his broader appeal is a question mark.

Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear

Andy Beshear, Governor of Kentucky, Commonwealth of Kentucky, speaks onstage during the 2022 Concordia Lexington Summit – Day 2 at Lexington Marriott City Center on April 8, 2022 in Lexington, Kentucky.

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Beshear is part of a small club within the party of Democratic governors who lead ruby-red states.

He’s also maintained popularity and has gained a reputation as someone who works well with both parties. Beshear had a 52% approval rating, with only 29% disapproving, according to an April Morning Consult poll. That’s notable popularity, given Biden received much lower marks in the state.

If Harris, 59, picks Beshear, 46, it would be the youngest Democratic presidential ticket since former President Bill Clinton and former Vice President Al Gore ran more than 30 years ago. Their combined age is only three years older than the 2012 Republican ticket of Mitt Romney and former Wisconsin Rep. Paul Ryan.

Like Shapiro, Beshear is also not known on the national stage. And he does not come from a swing state.

North Carolina Gov. Roy Cooper

North Carolina Governor Roy Cooper speaks before U.S. President Joe Biden arrives at a post-debate campaign rally on June 28, 2024 in Raleigh, North Carolina.

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Democrats are hoping to flip North Carolina this fall. In 2020, Biden lost the state by less than 2 percentage points, and having Cooper, 67, on the ticket, Democrats hope, could help make up that difference and deliver a much-needed 15 electoral votes.

Harris has been a frequent visitor to the Tar Heel state throughout Biden’s term. Her trip to Fayetteville, N.C., last week marked her 15th stop there since taking office and her seventh this year, according to the White House. On many of those trips, she’s appeared alongside Cooper.

Harris and Cooper have also known each other for more than a decade, first working together when Cooper was state attorney general, and Harris served in the same role in California. Cooper is term-limited as governor and will be leaving office at the end of the year.

For Cooper, his biggest obstacles are a lack of national name recognition, his age and that North Carolina is seen as a political reach for Democrats this year.

Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg

U.S. Secretary of Transportation Pete Buttigieg testifies before the Transportation, Housing and Urban Development, and Related Agencies Subcommittee of House Appropriations Committee at the Rayburn House Office building at the U.S. Capitol on April 30, 2024 in Washington, DC.

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Buttigieg’s 2020 presidential bid makes him a more recognizable face on the campaign trail. As a member of the Biden administration and a former mayor of a small city in Indiana, he could speak to the White House’s record and also potentially appeal to Midwest voters.

He’s also seen as one of the Democratic Party’s best messengers, willing to debate seemingly anyone on any outlet, including Fox News. He’s acquitted himself well in those settings and during congressional hearings, defending the Biden administration’s policies and the president himself.

The 42-year-old cabinet official would join Republican Vice Presidential nominee J.D. Vance as the second Millennial on a presidential ticket. Buttigieg and Harris would also be the youngest ticket for Democrats in three decades.

Buttigieg is the first openly gay man to hold a cabinet position. And he would be the first to appear on a major party ticket. Even with his prominent position in the Biden Cabinet and his 2020 campaign run, still about half of Americans don’t have an opinion on him, according to a recent Ipsos survey.

Arizona Sen. Mark Kelly

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Kelly, 60, represents another key swing state in the presidential race. The 60-year-old is a former astronaut and the husband of former Arizona Rep. Gabrielle Giffords, who was seriously injured in a mass shooting in 2011 and has proven to be a strong fundraiser for Democrats.

Kelly has joined Giffords as a loud voice on gun violence prevention. Harris has also made tackling gun violence a priority throughout her time as vice president. Kelly could also help blunt the GOP message on immigration, given he’s from a border state and has put some separation between himself and Biden on border policy.

He and Giffords also recently penned an op-ed about their struggle to have a child together and revealed that she was undergoing IVF treatments during the time she was shot. Women’s reproductive rights are also a major issue in this campaign.

Kelly’s seat isn’t up until 2028, but if Kelly were to join Harris on the ticket – and they win, it would certainly create a competitive race. While Kelly cuts a good profile, he’s also untested nationally.

California Gov. Gavin Newsom

California Gov. Gavin Newsom speaks during an event in San Francisco on Nov. 9, 2023.

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Newsom, 56, is one of the most recognizable governors in the country. He’s long been a rumored 2028 presidential contender and has been a key Biden ally throughout this campaign.

He is also seen as one of the Democratic Party’s best messengers with a facility for facts and numbers that stands as a stark contrast to President Biden. He gained a degree of notoriety for sitting for hour-long interviews with Fox News’s Sean Hannity and then debating Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis on the conservative cable outlet.

The California governor has, though, longstanding political baggage dating back early in his career. And if he ran with Harris, they would be an all-California ticket, which could draw ire from the right and present a constitutional hurdle.

Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker

J.B. Pritzker declares victory in the Democratic gubernatorial primary on Tuesday, March 20, 2018, at the Marriott Marquis in Chicago.

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Pritzker is a 59-year-old progressive billionaire who has been a vocal supporter of Biden and often goes on the offensive against Trump.

Despite his wealth, he has a blue-collar appeal, and he’s from the Midwest, which could help with those key Blue Wall states.

But he hails from another blue state, so he may not offer much additional electoral pull for Harris – and he’s not well known.

Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer

Michigan Governor Gretchen Whitmer announces new economic development projects at an event on October 5, 2022 in Grand Rapids, Michigan.

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Whitmer, 52, has been a rising star in the Democratic Party since she won the governor’s race in 2019. She was on the shortlist of names for Biden’s potential VP pick in 2020 and served as a co-chair of Biden’s reelection campaign.

And, of course, her state of Michigan will be crucial for Democrats to win. But there has never been an all-female presidential ticket, which could present a hurdle, though it would stand as a stark contrast to the all-white-male Trump-Vance ticket.