As Vice President Kamala Harris moves toward her first critical decision for her presidential campaign, she will have a cohort of new-generation Democratic leaders to consider for the vice presidential spot. The list of possibilities is fairly known and includes Democrats widely viewed as potential presidential candidates for 2028 or even this year. Whether or not she faces any competition for the nomination, she has begun to think about who will be her running mate in the race against the Republican Party. Here’s a look at the potential Democrats on Harris's list, according to The New York Times.
**Andy Beshear**
One of the leading candidates for this position is 46-year-old Andy Beshear, the Governor of Kentucky. He is a two-term Democratic governor from a strongly Republican state. When he first won in 2019, his victory was considered a fluke.
**Roy Cooper**
The next candidate is Roy Cooper, the Governor of North Carolina, who is 67 years old. He governs what could best be termed a swing state, where Barack Obama won in 2008.
**Mark Kelly**
Also in the running is U.S. Senator Mark Kelly from Arizona, who is 60 years old. The Arizona senator rose to national prominence after his wife, Congresswoman Gabby Giffords, survived an assassination attempt in 2011. Kelly, a veteran and former astronaut, has launched a campaign for stricter gun control measures. He won his Senate seat in 2020 and has positioned himself as a moderate in Arizona, building a coalition that includes white suburban women and young Latino voters who played a crucial role in delivering the state to Biden in 2020.
**J.B. Pritzker**
Fourth on the list is J.B. Pritzker, Governor of Illinois, who is 59 years old. Pritzker has served as the Governor of Illinois since 2019.
**Josh Shapiro**
Fifth is Josh Shapiro, the Governor of Pennsylvania, who is 51 years old. He was elected governor in 2022 after serving as the state’s attorney general. Pennsylvania is considered a must-win state for Democrats, and Shapiro's stock has risen among Democrats after he defeated his Republican opponent, Doug Mastriano, with 56 percent of the vote in 2022.
