The decision on the vice presidential candidate is one of the most important that Harris will have to make in her presidential race. To do so, she will have to take into account fundamental aspects such as her influence on pendulum statesthe vote of the moderate voters or women, as well as their weight in deindustrialized regions.
Kamala Harris’s potential running mates
Pennsylvania Governor Josh Shapiro, 51, could be key to getting the vote in his state, one of those considered “pendular”, that is They vote Democrats or Republicans depending on the context in which the elections take place.
The centrist governor managed to defeat his radical right-wing rival, backed by Republican Donald Trump, in 2022. Previously, he was twice Pennsylvania Attorney General and denounced the sexual assaults committed by Catholic priests against thousands of childrenin addition to suing the laboratory Purdue, considered the trigger of the opioid crisis.
Mark Kelly is another of the names that sounds to accompany Harris in the presidential elections. The 60-year-old former military man and astronaut is Senator from Arizonaanother swing state that Joe Biden narrowly won Trump in 2020, and he joined the campaign in favor of gun control since his wife, the former Democratic congresswoman Gabby Giffordsnearly died in 2011 when he was shot in the head at point-blank range.
For its part, another of the names that could be part of the presidential ballot is Andy Beshearthe governor of Kentucky, 46 years old. He was re-elected last November by campaigning on abortion rights, against a candidate supported by Trump. The former Republican president, however, was far ahead of Joe Biden in this state in 2016 and 2020.
Beshear’s moderate figure could help Democrats win in other states where the white working and middle class vote is crucial. The main ones are Pennsylvania and Michigan, states of the “rust belt”, a region of the northeastern United States marked by the industrial decline.
Asked on MSNBC’s “Morning Joe” about the possibility of being a running mate, he replied: “If someone asks you, you should at least listen to them.“. At the same time, criticized JD VanceTrump’s pick as his vice presidential contender.
Roy Cooperthe 67-year-old governor of North Carolina, also leads a swing state, where Biden lost to Trump by just one percentage point in 2020 and is another of those considered by Harris. Elected in this east coast state since 1986, the Democrat is known for never having lost an election.
The protection of the right to abortion, one of its battle horses, is an issue important in these electionstwo years after the Supreme Court to strike down U.S. women’s federal right to terminate pregnancies and let each state legislate on the matter.
Cooper declined to answer a question on “Morning Joe” on Monday about the possibility of him being chosen as a running mate and asked the audience to focus on Harris.
Other possible candidates include Michigan Governor, Gretchen Whitmeras well as Gavin Newsom Of California, Wes Moore from Maryland, J.B. Pritzker of Illinois and Tim Walz from Minnesota.
Also the Secretary of Transport Pete Buttigiegwho was a presidential candidate in 2020, as was the African-American senator from Georgia Raphael Warnock.
Kamala Harris headlined her first campaign event
With strong doses of optimism, Harris has already led her first campaign event this Monday where he assured: “We will take our case to the American people and we will win,” he said.
“We will fight for reproductive freedom, knowing that if Trump gets the chance, he will sign a statewide abortion ban.” said Harris, who has made abortion rights one of the pillars of her presidential campaign.
The Democratic Party has already promised a “transparent and orderly process” to define who will replace Biden and will now have to name a new candidate at the convention to be held in Chicago starting on August 19. However, for the moment everything points to there being no internal party election and Kamala Harris being the candidate.
However, this news could be confirmed ahead of time. Democratic National Committee Chairman Jaime Harrison said the Democratic Party will put forward a presidential candidate by August 7 and is committed to a “open and fair” nomination process.
Source: Ambito
