Who is in the running to be Kamala Harris' vice presidential candidate?

Credit: AP

Vice President Kamala Harris is preparing to announce her new running mate after a whirlwind start to her campaign.

The campaign plans to officially announce the choice before a rally in Philadelphia on Tuesday, where she’s expected to make her first appearance with her pick.

Over the weekend, Harris interviewed three final contenders in her search for the vice presidential candidate: Governor Tim Walz of Minnesota, Governor Josh Shapiro of Pennsylvania and Senator Mark Kelly of Arizona.

Whoever she picks could be crucial to aid her to victory in November's Presidential election with Harris looking set to face off against former President Donald Trump.

Harris is set to become the official Democratic at the party's convention in August.

Here, ITV News explains who Harris may pick as her running partner.

Josh Shapiro

Pennsylvania Governor Josh Shapiro Credit: AP

Pennsylvania Governor Shapiro was elected in a landslide victory in 2022 and was previously the state's attorney general.

He is broadly unknown to Americans and Democrats, except in the Northeast, where he has more name recognition and higher favorability.

During a stop in Philadelphia in July, Harris called Shapiro a “great partner to the president and me".

He endorsed Harris calling her a “patriot worthy of our support".

He made headlines last year by swiftly rebuilding a collapsed bridge on a crucial Philadelphia highway, marking a major political victory for the first-term governor.


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The assassination attempt against former Donald Trump in Butler, Pennsylvania, also placed the governor in the spotlight.

His response to the death of Corey Comperatore, the Trump supporter who was killed while shielding his wife and daughter, has especially been praised.

At a news conference a day after the shooting, Shapiro said: "Corey was a girl dad. Corey was a firefighter. Corey went to church every Sunday. Corey loved his community."

Mark Kelly

Mark Kelly was a former astronaut Credit: AP

Senator of Arizona, Mark Kelly, won the state by only 10,457 votes in 2020, making it a key swing state in November's election.

Out of the four potential Democratic vice presidential candidates, Kelly has the highest name recognition and favorability, according to an AP-NORC poll.

However, similar to the other candidates, he is not a household name.

Though a staunch Democrat, the former astronaut called undocumented migrants crossing the US Southern border a "crisis" in 2023.

He is the husband of former House congresswoman Gabby Giffords, who was seriously wounded in a 2011 mass shooting in Arizona.

Andy Beshear

Andy Beshear in 2024 Credit: AP

Kentucky Governor Beshear won reelection last November in the deep-red state, which Trump carried by 20 points in 2020.

Beshear expressed his willingness to run alongside Hariis if asked. Speaking to MSNBC about the possibility of being VP, he said: “Well, I think if somebody calls you on that, what you do is, is at least listen,” he replied.

Beshear made headlines for leading Kentucky through the COVID pandemic, deadly tornadoes in 2021, and flooding in 2022.

He has debated with Republicans over education, public assistance and tax policy.

His father, Steve Beshear, served as Kentucky governor for two terms and gained national attention for reducing the state's uninsured rate from over 20% to 7.5%, one of the country's largest improvements under the Affordable Care Act.

Tim Walz

Minnesota Governor Tim Walz Credit: AP

Governor of Minnesota, Walz, is relatively unknown to the majority of Americans. An AP-NORC poll showed that nine in ten US adults do not know enough about Waltz to form an opinion.

Walz has served 12 years in the House and was recently added to Harris' shortlist after he called Donald Trump and his Vice Presidential candidate "weird".

He currently leads the Democratic Governors Association.


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