Democratic voters already seem to be more enthusiastic about Vice President Kamala Harris, who is emerging as the No. 1 candidate. Now they want to know who she plans to pick as her running mate, and they already have their own favorites.
Roughly a dozen prominent Democrats have been suggested as potential runner-up candidates, including Govs. Josh Shapiro, Roy Cooper, JB Pritzker, Gretchen Whitmer and Tim Walz, as well as Sen. Mark Kelly of Arizona and Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg.
Harris is breaking barriers by becoming the first woman of color to become a major party’s presidential nominee. She will also be the first West Coast candidate to win the Democratic nomination.
His supporters at his rally in Milwaukee on Tuesday said they are open to the list of names that have already emerged.
But many told DailyMail.com that the most important thing is to choose the person who will best help her beat Donald Trump and balance the ticket. There is no clear favourite as to who that would be.
“I think he has a lot of good people to choose from,” said Courtney Ryan, 40, of Madison, Wisconsin.
“I hope he picks a governor from a key swing state who can help pick up some additional states during the election. Roy Cooper would be a good candidate,” Ryan said.
An average of recent polls on the Trump-Harris 2024 matchup shows an extremely tight race, with Trump leading the vice president by less than two points. Every poll conducted since President Biden dropped out and Harris took office has been within the margin of error.
“I really like North Carolina Governor Roy Cooper. I really like him,” agreed Anthony Banks, 66, of Milwaukee.
“I like Mark Kelly, but I’m leaning toward Josh Shapiro,” Rosanda Arndt responded. “There’s something about him that’s familiar to me and I think it would be a good match.”
Several Wisconsin Democrats told DailyMail.com that they would like to see either Governor Shapiro or Senator Kelly as the vice president’s running mates. Those two names were the most frequently mentioned, but they were not the only candidates suggested.
“We have so much talent there that I feel pretty comfortable with whoever they decide on. It will be best for the country, and the country comes first,” Arndt added.
“That’s going to be very important. I heard there was talk about Kelly,” said Mitch Hancock of Milwaukee. “I think he would be a good possibility, as would Whitmer of Michigan.”
“I have to do some research. I just saw the list this morning,” Maria Olig said. “I’m a Mark Kelly fan. So right now, with the knowledge I have, he’s at the top of my list.”
But Karen Siegel of Bayside, Wisconsin, has her own concerns about Harris’ choice of a senator as her running mate.
“I’ve heard all the names that have been mentioned. Josh Shapiro, the governor of North Carolina. Josh Shapiro seems like a good one. I think he should be governor. I don’t want Kelly to be kicked out of the Senate, so I think either one of them would be good,” Siegel said.
Arizona’s current governor is a Democrat, so if Kelly were elected, his appointed temporary replacement would likely also be a Democrat.
But at some point, there would have to be a special election for a permanent replacement, and with Arizona being a swing state for both the presidency and the Senate, Siegel doesn’t want to take any chances on who might win the seat with such a slim Senate majority.
Many Democratic voters are ditching their dream lists and focusing on what they think is more realistic, but in addition to the reported short list, there were some outliers in the mix.
Woman at Harris rally in Wisconsin wearing a t-shirt that says ‘Harris and anyone who isn’t JD Vance 2024’
“I know it’s not going to happen, but I would love to have Mayor Pete Buttigieg as vice president,” said Neil Fulton, a history professor in West Bend, Wisconsin.
“But I think we already have enough dynamics that could be working against Kamala Harris and adding another dynamic could further damage the candidacy,” he added.
“I know a lot of people have written off Michelle Obama and Gavin Newsom, but I think Michelle is not diversifying the field enough in the first place. I don’t think she’s interested in it at all,” said Joette Rockow of Milwaukee.
“I think Gavin (Newsom) is a little bit further to the left than we need, so I think someone like Shapiro or (Kentucky Gov.) Beshear or Pritzker or someone like that would be wonderful,” he said.
Rockew believes Shapiro would be the ‘‘The right kind of person you need to fill out the form.’
Where Democratic voters do agree is that what matters most is what’s at the top of the list, and there has been a shift in enthusiasm for restructuring.
A new CNN poll found that 50 percent of Harris’ supporters said they would vote for her rather than against Trump.
This is a stark change from the Trump-Biden matchup. Last month’s CNN poll found that only 37 percent of Biden voters said their vote was for the president, not against the former president.
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