Joe Biden, who has just thrown in the towel, announced on Sunday that he supports his vice-president Kamala Harris to become the new Democratic candidate in the November election, a natural but not automatic replacement.
Overview of the names circulating.
Kamala Harris
She stands out as the most obvious choice and Joe Biden has offered her his support: Vice President Kamala Harris, already set to succeed the president in the event of his death or incapacity, is very well positioned to be chosen by the Democrats.
A serial pioneer, the daughter of a Jamaican father and an Indian mother, she was the first woman and first black person to become California’s attorney general, and then the first senator of South Asian origin.
From her career as a magistrate, she retains a reputation for toughness that she could use in a campaign where crime issues weigh heavily.
Some progressives, however, criticize him for harshly punishing petty crimes, which has particularly affected minorities.
The 59-year-old vice president is also suffering from a flagging popularity rating, which could push Democrats to rally around another candidate.
Gavin Newsom
There is no rule that states that the running mate automatically replaces the incumbent candidate. That is why the name of California Governor Gavin Newsom was also being repeatedly mentioned before the withdrawal was announced.
The 56-year-old Democrat, a former mayor of San Francisco, has led the country’s most populous state for five years, making California a sanctuary for abortion rights.
While the man with the neatly combed locks has continued to support Joe Biden in recent weeks, he maintains only relative mystery about his presidential ambitions.
The governor has recently increased his foreign travel, freely aired commercials touting his record and invested millions of dollars in a political action committee, fueling speculation that he will run in 2028. Or as early as 2024?
Gretchen Whitmer
Another possible Democratic candidate: Governor Gretchen Whitmer.
The 52-year-old is leading Michigan, which has both a large working-class population and large black and Arab communities — constituencies that Biden is currently struggling to appeal to.
A fierce opponent of Donald Trump, she is known to have been the target of a kidnapping plan by a far-right militia.
The state she leads will be one of the most contested for the presidential election in November, a strong argument, according to her supporters, for nominating her as the party’s candidate.
Josh Shapiro
At 51, Pennsylvania Governor Josh Shapiro leads the largest swing state, a state whose political color fluctuates depending on the election and which will play a decisive role in November.
Before taking up the post in 2022, by clearly beating a radical right-wing competitor supported by Donald Trump, he had been twice elected attorney general of Pennsylvania.
In that role, the official exposed sexual assaults by Catholic priests against thousands of children and sued Purdue Laboratories, the maker of the powerful opiate OxyContin.
An effective orator and a confirmed centrist, Josh Shapiro has given himself the slogan of governor: “Get shit done,” which can be translated, very loosely and less colloquially, as: “Do the job.”
Others
The names of Illinois governor JB Pritzker; Maryland governor Wes Moore; and Kentucky governor Andy Beshear are also circulating, but their chances appear more limited for the moment.
Just like those of Senator Amy Klobuchar or Secretary of Transportation Pete Buttigieg — both former 2020 presidential candidates.
