Who will be presumptive Democratic presidential candidate Joe Biden’s running mate? The answer to this question will reveal much about the remainder of this year’s election campaign in the United States, the policy direction of a potential Biden administration and the future of the Democratic Party post-2024. In many ways, Biden’s decision may be a more consequential vice presidential choice than in any election in recent American history.
For Biden, five criteria will be key in choosing his running mate: (1) Who can best help him win the election on Nov. 3? (2) Assuming he wins, who can best support him in the White House as vice president? (3) Who is best prepared to step in as president were Biden to be incapacitated during his time as president? (4) Who is best suited to run for the presidency in 2024 and provide the Democratic Party its next generation of leadership? and (5) With whom does Biden feel “simpatico”?
As of mid-June, the following eleven individuals (in alphabetical order) are seen as the leading candidates: Former Georgia state legislator Stacey Abrams (46); Wisconsin Sen. Tammy Baldwin (58); Atlanta Mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms (50); Florida Rep. Val Demings (63); Illinois Sen. Tammy Duckworth (52); New Mexico Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham (60); California Sen. Kamala Harris (55); Rhode Island Gov. Gina Raimondo (49); former National Security Adviser Susan Rice (55); Massachusetts Sen. Elizabeth Warren (71); and Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer (48). Abrams, Bottoms, Demings, Harris and Rice are African-American, Duckworth is Asian-American and Grisham is Latina.