After Joe Biden withdrew from the presidential race, Kamala Harris swiftly became the presumptive Democratic nominee, as scores of high-profile elected Democrats lined up to endorse her.
In Biden’s announcement that he would no longer pursue a second term, he thanked Harris “for being an extraordinary partner in all this work”. Later, in endorsing her, he called his choice to run with her in 2020 “the best decision I’ve made”.
In short order, a series of powerful endorsements rolled in, including from Democrats formerly viewed as possible presidential candidates themselves. Some of them are now being floated as potential vice-presidential candidates on a Harris ticket.
Harris must now make a major decision: who will be her own running mate. Here are some of the names Democrats are floating as possible vice-presidential picks.
Mark Kelly
The Arizona senator would offer swing-state credibility and could be a favored choice among party elites, given his role as a moderate in the Democratic party. His record as a combat veteran US navy pilot and former astronaut could also be a draw for independent voters. Kelly has been an advocate for gun reform after a shooting left his wife – the former US representative Gabby Giffords – partly paralyzed.
“I couldn’t be more confident that Vice-President Kamala Harris is the right person to defeat Donald Trump and lead our country into the future,” Kelly wrote on X, soon after Biden announced his withdrawal. Since then, Kelly has acted as possible vice-presidential picks always do: non-committal but enthusiastic. “This is not about me,” Kelly told reporters recently. “But always, always when I’ve had the chance to serve, I think that’s very important to do.”
Josh Shapiro
The governor of Pennsylvania has been a strong supporter of Biden and a faithful surrogate for his campaign. Shapiro also has a track record of winning races in a swing state, serving as Pennsylvania’s attorney general for six years before being elected governor in 2022. An outspoken opponent of Trump for years, Shapiro has nonetheless built bipartisan support within his own state; a May Philadelphia Inquirer/New York Times/Siena College poll showed he enjoyed 42% approval from Republicans, a rare showing of support in an age of hyper-partisanship.
Shapiro was swift to endorse Harris, saying she had “served the country honorably” and describing her as a unifying figure. He has since emerged alongside Kelly as a favourite to be picked. Like Kelly Shapiro is staying studiously modest, saying Harris will “make that decision when she is ready, and I have all the confidence in the world that she will make that decision, along with many others, in the best interests of the Amercian people”.
Tim Walz
The Minnesota governor has surged into contention, reportedly making up the leading trio with Shapiro and Kelly, in part because the Trump campaign started making noises about stealing Minnesota (long a Democratic bastion) and in part because Walz is proving a very effective surrogate indeed.
A former teacher and sergeant in the US national guard, Walz has a folksy but compassionate air that plays well at rallies and on TV. In the latter arena, he called Trump’s Republican party “weird” and gleefully defended and discussed that label. Walz is strong on fundraising calls too, including a “White Dudes for Harris” Zoom session that also featured Jeff Bridges and Mark Hamill and raised a cool $4m.
Like Shapiro and Kelly, Walz is being careful to sound honoured, interested and non-committal: “Being mentioned is certainly an honour. I trust Vice-President Harris’s judgment … I would do what is in the best interests of the country.”
Andy Beshear
Beshear’s unlikely position as the Democratic governor of Kentucky – a state that voted for Trump by 25 points in 2020 – makes him a compelling candidate. In office, Beshear has vetoed Republican bills banning abortions and gender-affirming care for transgender minors, although the GOP-controlled state legislature was able to override his vetoes in both cases.
Beshear would also offer a contrast to Trump’s running mate, JD Vance, the Ohio senator who in his popular 2016 memoir Hillbilly Elegy claimed Appalachian culture was to blame for the region’s impoverishment. On MSNBC’s Morning Joe show recently, Beshear endorsed Harris and knocked Vance. “JD Vance ain’t from here,” Beshear said, nodding to Vance’s depictions of Kentuckians as lazy.
Pete Buttigieg
The US transportation secretary and is also a former mayor of South Bend, Indiana, who rocketed to political stardom during his bid for the Democratic presidential nomination in 2020, an effort which gained surprising momentum given his sparse political record. A navy veteran, Buttigieg has spoken powerfully about coming out in 2015 and later marrying his husband, Chasten Glezman Buttigieg, and adopting children. Buttigieg has served during a tumultuous time for US transportation systems – from the devastating and high-profile derailment of a train in East Palestine, Ohio, to airline meltdowns, to the Key Bridge collapse in Baltimore. He is also an effective communicator for Democratic causes in hostile arenas – particularly on Fox News.
No longer in the running: Gretchen Whitmer
The Michigan governor is a Democratic star who some hoped would run for president this year and was then widely floated as a potential running mate, even if it seems highly unlikely Harris will pick another woman.
Whitmer endorsed Harris swiftly and quickly dispelled the notion that she would be joining the ticket. “I’m not leaving Michigan,” Whitmer said at a media event. “I’m proud to be the governor of Michigan.” She later made that official, telling CBS: “I have communicated with everyone, including the people of Michigan, that I’m going to stay as governor until the end of my term, at the end of 2026. I am not a part of the vetting.”
No longer in the running: Roy Cooper
The 67-year-old governor of North Carolina touts a long record in the state as a representative, attorney general and governor. Approaching the end of his time in the office, he has fought for the passage of bipartisan legislation despite Republicans controlling the state legislature. In 2023, Cooper signed into law Medicaid expansion, which some red states have declined despite the measure being guaranteed under the Affordable Care Act.
Cooper also quickly endorsed Harris, saying: “I appreciate people talking about me, but I think the focus right now needs to be on her this week.“
He then went further, telling supporters he did not want to be considered for the running mate pick. “We’ll all work to make sure she wins,” Cooper said.
No longer in the running: Wes Moore
The Maryland governor has been floated by some Democrats as a running mate. The only sitting Black governor is widely considered to be a rising star in the party – but perhaps more a candidate for the presidential nomination itself in 2028 or even after that.
Sworn into office in January 2023, Moore’s record in office is short. He has said that he would not want to be tapped as a vice-presidential candidate, saying: “I want to stay as the Governor of Maryland, I love the momentum we are seeing right now in the state of Maryland.”
