Some Democratic strategists are questioning whether Vice President and presumptive Democratic presidential nominee Kamala Harris should choose Michigan Governor Gretchen Whitmer as her running mate in the November election, Politico reported Saturday.
Whitmer's name has been tossed around as a possible running mate alongside Harris, who emerged as the Democratic front-runner in party polls after President Joe Biden dropped out of the race on Sunday, but some Democrats and strategists have questioned whether a Harris-Whitmer pairing, or any two-woman pairing more broadly, would be successful. according to To Politico. (Related: Kamala Harris' TikTok presence seems huge until you see Donald Trump's follower count)
“she [pick a woman]… But she's not,” Bill Shaheen, husband of New Hampshire Democratic Sen. Gina Shaheen, told Politico after introducing Whitmer at a rally for Harris in New Hampshire on Thursday. Shaheen instead expressed interest in Arizona Democratic Sen. Mark Kelly as Harris' running mate, feeling he would be a good rival to Ohio Republican Sen. J.D. Vance, who was appointed by former President Donald Trump.
Michigan Governor Gretchen Whitmer promotes her book, “True Gretch,” during an event on the Michigan State University campus in East Lansing, Michigan, July 23, 2024. (Photo by Bill Pagliano/Getty Images)
“I want to believe that a country that has never supported a woman president will support two women candidates,” Mary Ann Marsh, a Democratic strategist in Massachusetts, told Politico. “With so much at stake, do we want to take the risk?”
According to Politico, in several interviews during her visit to New Hampshire, Whitmer made it clear that the country was ready to support an all-female candidate, pointing to the fact that “since the beginning of time, there's only ever been two men.” However, she has repeatedly denied the idea of running for vice president, claiming that she is “not involved in that process.”
“I wish we were ready, because it's so divisive, but I'm not sure we are,” Democratic National Convention chair Maxine Mosley told Politico about an all-female nominee.
Several senior Democratic officials are being considered for the vice presidential nomination as Harris and her team make a hasty decision, as expected by the Democratic National Committee. choose by Aug. 7, according to Politico. Among the candidates are North Carolina Gov. Roy Cooper, Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg, Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro, Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear and Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo.
“I'm not sure the country is ready to have two women running for the top spot,” New Hampshire Democrat Alison Hamilton told Politico.
“We're here for Kamala. Two women? I don't know,” added Hamilton's sister, Jean Collier.
Whitmer's office did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
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