Vice President Kamala Harris has just a few days to decide on her running mate, and rumors continue to circulate about who she’ll pick.
Though she could choose anyone, a few names in particular have gotten the most speculation.
They include Sen. Mark Kelly (D-Ariz.), Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz, and Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro.
These three were reportedly interviewed by the vice president at her Naval Observatory residence on Sunday.
Of the three men speculated to be the top contenders for the job, Shapiro in particular has gotten a lot of attention in recent days.
Elected in 2022, Shapiro won an electoral landslide victory to become governor of the Keystone State over Republican Doug Mastriano, who had been backed by former President Donald Trump.
It makes him an attractive pick in a region where some people fear Harris may struggle.
Shapiro, as a popular Democratic governor from a swing state, is seen as a strong contender in the Rust Belt, which will could decide the outcome of the election.
Pennsylvania is a must-win battleground state for Democrats.
Democrats also may need to hold onto at least one other state in the core Rust Belt trio of Pennsylvania, Michigan, and Wisconsin in order to reach 270 electoral votes.
Similar concerns likely contributed to Trump’s choice of Sen. JD Vance (R-Ohio) as his running mate, as many observers see Vance as having strong appeal among working-class whites due to his background.
Walz meets the same criterion, hailing from the Rust Belt state of Minnesota.
Though Minnesota itself hasn’t voted Republican in more than 50 years, Walz, like Shapiro, could be seen as bringing more Rust Belt appeal to the ticket.
Either of these picks could strongly hint that Harris plans to follow President Joe Biden’s Rust Belt-focused electoral strategy.
As Biden saw continuously poor polling in the Sun Belt—including swing-states like North Carolina, Georgia, Arizona, and Nevada—his electoral strategy heavily emphasized the Rust Belt.
A three-way victory in the Rust Belt trio would almost certainly mean a victory for Democrats, even if Republicans won all Sun Belt battleground states.
The choice of Kelly, meanwhile, could indicate that Harris plans to pursue a Sun Belt-focused strategy.
Kelly is a former astronaut and Desert Storm combat veteran who currently serves as the junior senator from Arizona.
He’s shown strong electoral success in Arizona, initially gaining the seat in 2020 as a flip from Sen. Martha McSally (R-Ariz.) by around 3 percent, winning about 51 percent of the vote.
In 2022, he again fended off a challenge from venture capitalist Blake Masters, maintaining roughly the same margins as he achieved in 2020.
Since joining the Senate, Kelly has marketed himself as a moderate, particularly on issues related to the southern border.
For instance, Kelly fought for the continuation of Title 42, an immigration authority that allowed swift deportations of some illegal immigrants.
Already, Harris has seen a bit more success in the Sun Belt than her predecessor for the nomination, tightening the polls in Georgia to within a point.
Should Harris hold onto Georgia and Arizona, which Biden won by razor-thin margins in 2020, she would still need to win at least one state in the Rust Belt.
Other names have been thrown around as contenders for the nomination, and reports say that several contenders have received vetting materials.
Some of these other speculated contenders include Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear, Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker and Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg.
In any case, Harris has just around 36 hours to make a final pick.
She’s expected to formally announce her pick during a campaign stop in Philadelphia on Tuesday, before joining them on a tour of swing-states ahead of the Democratic National Convention (DNC).
This week, Harris formally received enough delegate support to be named the nominee during a virtual roll call vote. The vote precludes any chance of a last-minute coup against Harris at the DNC.
Both are expected to formally accept the nomination and give a speech at the DNC, which will be held in Chicago from Aug. 19-22.
—Joseph Lord
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