REHOBOTH BEACH, Del. — Vice President Kamala Harris’ presidential campaign has requested vetting materials from the seven Democrats being considered as her running mate, USA Today learned from a source familiar with the campaign.
Other candidates running for the post include North Carolina Gov. Roy Cooper, Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer, Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro, Arizona Democratic Sen. Mark Kelly, Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz and Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker.
The Harris campaign also requested research materials from a lesser-known Democrat who is also a potential vice presidential candidate, Cedric Richmond, a former congressman from Louisiana who served as a top aide in the Biden administration and campaign.
Notably absent from the list of Democrats currently under review are Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear and Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg, who have both been rumored as possible running mates for Harris, and Beshear told MSNBC on Monday that he has spoken with the VP Harris since Biden dropped out of the 2024 presidential race.
Governor Whitmer also attempted to withdraw from the race, telling a local television station on Monday that she had “no plans to leave Michigan.”
A source familiar with the vetting process for Harris’ vice presidential nominee said that while other Democrats not included in the group of seven being vetted could emerge as candidates, they are not currently on the Harris campaign’s radar.
Sources confirmed that the vetting process is being led by Eric Holder, a former Attorney General during the Obama administration who endorsed Harris this week, and Dana Remus of the law firm Covington & Burling.
Remus served as White House Counsel under the Biden Administration and led the vetting process for U.S. Supreme Court Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson ahead of her Senate confirmation in mid-2022.
The Harris campaign declined to comment.
Fast-paced vice presidential race highlights slim chances
Harris has been moving quickly to build out the team that was formed after President Joe Biden’s surprise departure from the 2024 campaign.
Within 48 hours, she had secured more than the 1,976 delegates needed to become the party’s presumptive presidential nominee ahead of the first round of voting at the national convention in Chicago in August. Vice presidential candidates run separately, so whoever Harris chooses will be voted on separately at the convention.
With about 100 days until the election, experts say the short time frame means the group under scrutiny could be the only candidates.
“Under normal circumstances, this is a process that would take months to unfold,” David Hopkins, a political science professor at Boston University, told USA Today.
“They don’t have that time with the tournament coming up in a few weeks,” he added.
Trump’s key choice: choosing a “balanced” candidate to contrast with Vance
According to experts, all the names on the list are auditioning to become Harris’ new member, and each has their own strengths and weaknesses. The first step will be to determine who is the best fit for Harris.
Hopkins said the vetting list of vice presidential candidates suggested Harris’ team was considering who would be best able to appeal to different demographics of voters as she tries to assemble a new coalition to help defeat Republican nominee Donald Trump in November’s presidential election.
“When you have a woman of color from California who has experience in Washington, the best way to balance that is to think about someone from another part of the country or a battleground state,” he said.
Another use for Ms. Harris as a running mate is as an attack dog for Mr. Trump, particularly in contrast to running mate J.D. Vance (R-Ohio), who has defended his rural Ohio upbringing.
During an appearance on “Morning Joe” on Tuesday, for example, Minnesota Gov. Walz directly criticized Vance, who is viewed as a lunch messenger to working-class voters.
“What I do know is that people like J.D. Vance know nothing about rural America,” Waltz said.
“He’s totally wrong. It’s not about hate. It’s not about destruction,” he added. “The golden rule is, mind your own business. Their policies have destroyed rural America. They have divided us. They’re in our exam rooms telling us what books to read.”
Beshear and other rumored Harris contenders launched similar attacks earlier this week.
Michael Traugott, professor emeritus of political science at the University of Michigan, said Harris’ candidacy would reset the 2024 presidential race and be her first big test as the Democratic Party’s standard-bearer. Her selection would signal to voters the vice president’s thinking about the White House race with just over 100 days to go.
“It’s a little hard to predict with precision because we don’t have enough polling to compare the actual Democratic team to Trump and Vance,” he said, “but it’s still a very close race and most of the action is happening in the battleground states, so I would probably put the battleground state governors higher on the list.”
