Vice President Kamala Harris appears ready to secure the Democratic Party's nomination and could soon be tasked with selecting a vice-presidential candidate to be her running mate in the 2024 election.
What Happened: Harris has secured enough delegates to win the party's nomination according to reports, setting up a head-to-head battle against former President Donald Trump in the 2024 election.
One of Harris' first tasks could be to select a vice-presidential candidate. Former Attorney General Eric Holder is reportedly tasked to lead the search as Harris looks to drum up additional support from Democratic and Independent voters.
Over $16 million was wagered on Polymarket, which offers bettors the chance to gamble on who Harris will select.
The current favorites are listed below:
- Mark Kelly: 35%
- Josh Shapiro: 24%
- Roy Cooper: 20%
- Andy Beshear: 9%
- Pete Buttigieg: 4%
- Tim Walz: 3%
- Gretchen Whitmer: 3%
There appear to be four betting favorites.
Kelly is a U.S. Senator for Arizona since 2020 and a former astronaut. The Senator has some name recognition thanks to his space missions and being married to former Congresswoman Gabby Giffords.
Shapiro is the governor of Pennsylvania since 2023 and has risen in name recognition. Before endorsing Harris, the governor was viewed as a potential replacement option for Biden. Shapiro was Pennsylvania attorney general from 2017 to 2023 (Harris held that title in California before joining the Senate).
North Carolina Governor Cooper previously served in the state's House of Representatives and Senate. He was also the state’s attorney general from 2001 to 2017.
Beshear is the governor of Kentucky since 2019. Beshear also served as the attorney general of the state from 2016 to 2019.
Further down the list are Secretary of Transportation Buttigieg, Minnesota Gov. Walz and Michigan Gov. Whitmer.
Why It's Important: With an expected close race against Trump, Harris’ VP decision could be an especially important one.
Trump selected Senator J.D. Vance as his running mate, bringing in someone with minimal political experience and a business background. Vance is also one of the youngest vice-presidential candidates ever. He’s expected to appeal to right-wing voters in the Midwest and Rust Belt states.
Harris could counter this by picking someone from a state in this region like Pennsylvania, Indiana (Buttigieg), or Michigan.
Buttigieg, 42, is one of the youngest members in strong contention for the role. The former mayor of South Bend, Indiana would bring a millennial to the campaign — offsetting millennial Vance.
Cooper, 67, is one of the most experienced candidates and has experience as a governor, state representative, state senator and state attorney general.
Swing states could be incredibly important in the 2024 election. The commonly listed swing states are Arizona, Georgia, Michigan, Nevada, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin with North Carolina also sometimes listed. This would make Kelly, Shapiro, Cooper and Whitmer as potential picks to help secure the key states.
Whitmer has endorsed Harris and said she does not want to be included on the ticket, likely ruling out a potential run.
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