Kamala Harris will hold her first rally with her new running mate on Tuesday in the hometown of Gov. Josh Shapiro in Philadelphia.
Political coverage:
Vice President Kamala Harris is expected to announce her running mate on Tuesday, when she holds her first rally in Philadelphia.
The pair will tour cities in seven swing states over four days. In addition to Philadelphia, they will travel to western Wisconsin, Detroit, Raleigh, Savannah, Phoenix and Las Vegas.
The Harris campaign is warning against reading too much into choosing Philadelphia as the first stop on the Democratic campaign tour. Vice President Harris is interviewing her potential running mates in the coming days, so the campaign hopes to leave the door open to other potential running mates for the Democratic candidate. .
Securing Pennsylvania for Democrats in November will change the electoral strategies of each campaign. For Trump, Pennsylvania is a must-have state if he wants to win the White House. Without Pennsylvania, Trump would actually have to campaign in the remaining battleground states. Trump must win three states – Michigan, Wisconsin, Arizona and Georgia – to win the presidency. Most of the remaining battleground states are tied, with Trump not leading in any of them.
The main reason why Harris might not choose Shapiro is also one of his biggest positives. His youth. Shapiro just turned 51 in June, and some might see running against two younger candidates as a problem compared to recent presidential election trends in the United States.
However, Barack Obama was 47 years old when he took office. The average age of a U.S. president when he is sworn in is 55.
The Harris/Shapiro ticket is more in line with historical averages than some might think. The campaign could suggest otherwise, but it would be quite a charade for Harris to hold her first rally in Pennsylvania with her running mate without choosing Josh Shapiro.
Awards and Professional Memberships
Member of Society of Professional Journalists and American Political Science Association
