On July 21, U.S. President Biden announced his withdrawal from the presidential election in November and declared his support for Vice President Harris as the Democratic presidential candidate. Possible candidates for Harris’s vice presidential nomination include governors and senators from battleground states such as Michigan and Pennsylvania. The photo shows Governor Gretchen Whitmer of Michigan, taken in February last year (2024 Reuters/Rebecca Cook)
[Washington, 21st – Reuters] – President Biden announced on the 21st his withdrawal from the presidential election in November and declared his support for Vice President Harris as the Democratic presidential candidate.
As for Harris’s vice presidential candidates, names of governors and senators from battleground states such as Michigan and Pennsylvania have been mentioned.
◎ Governor Andy Beshear of Kentucky
He has built his political career in strongly Republican Kentucky. In the 2020 presidential election, Trump won by a margin of over 25 percentage points. He emphasizes his achievements in bringing jobs to the state, supporting public education, and expanding access to healthcare. Although he opposed an abortion ban bill as governor, it was blocked by a Republican-controlled state legislature.
◎ Secretary of Transportation Pete Buttigieg
He ran in the 2020 presidential election, gaining strong support among Democrats against Biden and Harris, and won the Iowa caucus, the first contest for the party nomination. Later, he supported Biden and was appointed as a member of Biden’s administration in 2021. He is the former mayor of South Bend, Indiana, and has strong ties to important battleground state Michigan, which will significantly influence the outcome of the November election.
◎ Governor Roy Cooper of North Carolina
He focuses on economic development and has relatively high support in the battleground state of North Carolina. Trump won in the presidential elections of 2016 and 2020 in this state.
◎ Senator Mark Kelly (Arizona)
Being relatively moderate in traditionally Republican-leaning Arizona has made him popular among Democratic elites. Biden narrowly won in the state in the 2020 election. A former U.S. Navy commander, he has a career as an astronaut. His wife is Democratic former Representative Gabrielle Giffords, who was seriously injured in a shooting in 2011. The issue of gun control is one of the key topics in the election campaign.
◎ Governor Josh Shapiro of Pennsylvania
Although he just took office as governor last year, he is seen as a rising star in the party nationwide. Shapiro has experience as the state’s Attorney General, and his legal background resembles that of Harris’s as a prosecutor. Pennsylvania is one of the battleground states.
◎ Governor J.B. Pritzker of Illinois
With a background as a wealthy businessman and heir to the Hyatt hotel chain, he has supported Biden’s campaign. He wields considerable power within the party, such as launching the Democratic National Convention to be held next month in Chicago.
◎ Governor Gretchen Whitmer of Michigan
She has built a strong base in the battleground state of Michigan. In 2020, she was considered as a vice presidential candidate before Biden chose Harris. She is a significant supporter and spokesperson for Biden’s reelection efforts. Should she become the vice presidential candidate, she would be the first female vice presidential candidate from a major party.
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