Kamala Harris' top 5 Vice President picks: everything you need to know

Josh Shapiro

Hometown: Kansas City, Missouri

Age: 51 (June 20, 1973) — 9 years younger than Harris

Early Life: Josh Shapiro spent a few years of his childhood on a U.S. Navy base where his father, a pediatrician, served as a medical officer (via JoshShapiro.org), and his mother worked as a teacher. Though he was born in Missouri, Shapiro was still very young when his family moved to Montgomery County, Pennsylvania.

Josh Shapiro's Political Career

Incumbent: Pennsylvania Governor

Start Date: January 17, 2023

Prior to serving as the Governor of Pennsylvania, Shapiro was a member of the Pennsylvania House of Representatives between 2005 and 2012. He then won the 2011 election to the Montgomery County Board of Commissioners. As reported by NBC Philadelphia, this was the first time that the Democrats won a majority of Commissioner seats since the 1870s — ending the Republican Party's 140-year control of Montgomery County for 140 years.

Shapiro was elected Pennsylvania Attorney General in 2016 and was then reelected in 2020. He faced tight races with Republican opponents both times, but ultimately emerged victorious. In 2022, Shapiro's gubernatorial campaign was another tight race against Republican senator Doug Mastriano, but Shapiro won yet again.

Where does Josh Shapiro stand on LGBTQ+ rights?

Shapiro has been a very positive force for LGBTQ+ rights in Pennsylvania. Namely, the Human Rights Campaign (HRC) has lauded Shapiro for taking legal action in support of trans students and their right to use bathrooms in accordance with their gender identities. Shapiro also advocated for the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to end its homophobic limitations on queer men to donate blood, and also stood against the Trump administration's decision to ban trans people from serving in the military and seeking medical care.

As recently as May 2024, Shapiro approved a policy that opposed the practice of conversion therapy. "The state Board of Nursing Thursday joined the boards of Medicine, Psychology, Osteopathic Medicine, and Social Workers, Marriage and Family Therapists, and Professional Counselors, which all voted recently to adopt new statements of policy saying minors should not be subjected to the discredited and harmful practice [of] conversion therapy, [which] seeks to turn LGBTQ+ people straight and/or cisgender," The Advocate reported.

The pros & cons of Josh Shapiro as Kamala Harris' VP pick.

Shapiro has a solid track record of winning elections against Republicans in Pennsylvania, which is a very important factor for any presidential candidate seeking the state's 19 electoral votes in the Electoral College system.

Historically, not only is Pennsylvania a swing state, but its residents have also voted for the winning candidate in most presidential elections. This winning streak includes Biden in 2020, Trump in 2016, and Obama in both 2012 and 2008. Even though picking Shapiro as the VP candidate wouldn't guarantee that Harris could win Pennsylvania, her campaign is strongly considering him as an addition to this Democratic ticket.

It's always enticing to consider a VP pick with a winning track record in a swing state, but it's worth noting that presidential elections have very different dynamics from state and local elections. Moreover, Shapiro's victories in the state all resulted from very tight races, not wide margins, which means that those outcomes could've been different. Betting on historical data in high-risk situations like presidential campaigns is obviously tempting, but it's also dangerous to assume that Shapiro's winning track record will bring any sort of guarantees to the Harris campaign.

Tim Walz

Hometown: West Point, Nebraska

Age: 60 (April 6, 1964) — same age as Harris

Early Life: Tim Walz was born and raised in a rural community in Nebraska. As reported by the Omaha World-Herald, his father died of lung cancer shortly after graduating high school. Walz was 17 years old when he enlisted in the Army National Guard, which started his career in the U.S. Army that would last until 2005. Beyond that, Walz also worked as a teacher and football coach.

Tim Walz's Political Career

Incumbent: Minnesota Governor

Start Date: January 7, 2019

Walz's political career started in 2007 when he was elected to the U.S. House of Representatives from the state of Minnesota. At the time, he became the "highest-ranking enlisted soldier in the history of Congress" (via The Hill). Walz remained in this role until 2018, when he ran for Governor of Minnesota and won. He was subsequently reelected in 2022.

In this 2024 presidential election cycle, Walz is credited with describing Trump's running mate, JD Vance, as "just weird." This really ruffled some feathers among Republicans and kicked off this ongoing trend of referring to Trump and Vance as "weird" people, which really gets under their skin.

Where does Tim Walz stand on LGBTQ+ rights?

According to the Star Tribune, Walz helped "gay and lesbian students deal with bullying" and facilitated the creation of a gay-straight alliance in the school while working as a teacher and football coach back in 1999, which serves as evidence of his long-standing allyship prior to his career in politics.

Walz had a hand in various noteworthy achievements for the LGBTQ+ community during his tenure as Minnesota Governor. Over the years, The Advocate reported on Walz restricting and then banning conversion therapy in the state, turning Minnesota into a refuge for transgender youth seeking gender-affirming care, and making it illegal for state libraries to ban LGBTQ+ books, to name a few.

The pros & cons of Tim Walz as Kamala Harris' VP pick.

Recent presidential campaigns for the Democratic Party have all relied on the so-called "blue wall," described by CNN as a block of states — Maryland, Delaware, Pennsylvania, New Jersey, New York, Connecticut, Rhode Island, Massachusetts, Vermont, and Maine — that have usually voted for Democratic candidates to win the presidency. NBC News has argued that picking Walz as Harris' VP running mate "would translate to support across critical nearby 'blue wall' states."

Walz's military career and rural upbringing have also been noted as beneficial in challenging the conservative depiction of Democrats as "coastal elites" and "snowflakes." Given that Trump and Vance are already trying to paint Harris as an ultra-progressive politician from San Francisco, it could be advantageous to have Walz — a popular, plainspoken governor from the Midwest — as her vice presidential candidate.

On the other hand, some political pundits worry about potential attacks against Walz related to the Minnesota Governor's handling of Black Lives Matter protests in Minneapolis and failures within the Minnesota Education Department that led to the biggest pandemic fraud case in the country (via NBC News).

Pete Buttigieg

Hometown: South Bend, Indiana

Age: 42 (January 19, 1982) — 18 years younger than Harris

Early Life: Born and raised in South Bend, Indiana, both of Pete Buttigieg's parents worked as college professors. During his high school years, Buttigieg won first prize in a John F. Kennedy Presidential Library and Museum contest with an essay (written in 2000) that highlighted and praised Bernie Sanders as an "outstanding and inspiring example of integrity [as] the country's only Independent Congressman." Buttigieg graduated high school as valedictorian and then graduated from Harvard University as magna cum laude in 2004. As an adult, he also served in the U.S. Navy Reserve between 2009 and 2017.

Pete Buttigieg's Political Career

Incumbent: Transportation Secretary

Start Date: February 3, 2021

Buttigieg's political career isn't as extensive in comparison to most of the other potential VP picks in the Harris campaign, largely because he's much younger than all of them. His journey in politics started in 2012 when he was elected as the Mayor of South Bend, Indiana. He was then reelected and ended his tenure in 2020, which is a testament to his popularity given that Indiana is considered a "red state."

While running for president in 2020, Buttigieg became the first out LGBTQ+ person to win a primary election following his caucus win in Iowa (via The Advocate). Furthermore, the Human Rights Campaign (HRC) praised Buttigieg in its 177th Congressional Scorecard report as the "first [out] LGBTQ+, Senate-confirmed person to hold a Cabinet-level position" after he was appointed to serve as Secretary of Transportation in the Biden administration — a position that he still holds as of 2024.

Where does Pete Buttigieg stand on LGBTQ+ rights?

Buttigieg is a gay man, so let's start there! He came out in an essay published in the South Bend Tribune in 2015 while already serving as Mayor of South Bend, writing:

"I was well into adulthood before I was prepared to acknowledge the simple fact that I am gay. It took years of struggle and growth for me to recognize that it's just a fact of life, like having brown hair, and part of who I am. Putting something this personal [story] on the pages of a newspaper does not come easy. We Midwesterners are instinctively private to begin with, and I'm not used to viewing this as anyone else's business."

The LGBTQ+ community isn't a monolith, and its perspective on Buttigieg is nuanced. Some queer people are very excited about Buttigieg's representation as a high-ranking, gay politician who clearly has a bright future ahead of him. Other queer people have argued that "representation" for just representation purposes isn't enough, highlighting that Buttigieg could've done more for the community he represents.

To be fair, Buttigieg's tenure as the Mayor of South Bend (which is in a conservative state) and as Secretary of Transportation (during the Biden administration) didn't exactly position him to make a huge difference in LGBTQ+ rights. However, he is a gay man (married to Chasten Buttigieg, with whom he has two children) and has advocated for LGBTQ+ rights through various interviews, social media posts, and special appearances whenever our community was under attack.

The pros & cons of Pete Buttigieg as Kamala Harris' VP pick.

Assessing Buttigieg's chances of being picked as Harris' vice-presidential running mate requires a lot of context and nuance.

Let's start with the pros. As reported by Politico, the Secretary of Transportation has been the most popular and effective Democrat to push back on conservative talking points through multiple appearances on Fox News in the last few years, garnering unexpected praise from conservatives. Moreover, a Democratic ticket with Harris (a Black and South Asian woman) as president and Buttigieg (an out gay man) as vice president would be even more historic and, some would argue, "progressive."

Now, the cons. While it's hard to deny how groundbreaking a Harris-Buttigieg presidential ticket would be, some political experts reason that U.S. voters across the country might not be ready to elect the first Black and South Asian woman as president and the first gay vice president at the same time. Harris winning as president would already be historic, and adding Buttigieg to the ticket could be a "liability" despite his noteworthy approval ratings with conservatives. Many progressive voters also consider Harris and Buttigieg to be "centrists" in their political views, which could perhaps favor other VP picks over Buttigieg.

Mark Kelly

Hometown: Orange, New Jersey

Age: 60 (February 21, 1964) — same age as Harris

Early Life: Both of Mark Kelly's parents are retired police officers, and he has a twin brother called Scott Kelly. Born and raised in New Jersey, Kelly attended the U.S. Merchant Marine Academy in Kings Point, New York and graduated with a dual degree in marine engineering and nautical science, according to The Arizona Republic. He later earned a master's degree in aeronautical engineering from the U.S. Naval Postgraduate School, which started his journey to become an astronaut for NASA. Per Time Magazine, Kelly has logged a total of 54 days in space throughout four trips.

Mark Kelly's Political Career

Incumbent: Arizona Senator

Start Date: December 2, 2020

Kelly's political history is even shorter than Buttigieg's given that he only got into politics after serving in the military and having a successful career as an astronaut. Specifically, Kelly's first position as an elected official came with his win to become an Arizona Senator in 2020, which is a position that he still holds.

Where does Mark Kelly stand on LGBTQ+ rights?

According to The Advocate, Kelly is "an LGBTQ+ ally who voted in favor of the Equality Act, which seeks to prohibit discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity." He is also "pro-choice," as expressed in a press release in response to the U.S. Supreme Court's decision to overturn Roe v. Wade in 2022.

The pros & cons of Mark Kelly as Kamala Harris' VP pick.

A common throughline between Harris' top VP picks is that it seems beneficial for her to pick a person with a broader reach and name recognition that could help her counter-argue the conservative narrative about her administration being "extremely liberal." One could argue that most progressives see Harris as more of a centrist, however, which makes this quite an interesting conundrum.

Kelly's ability to reach independent voters is very compelling when making the case for him to become Harris' running mate. Per NBC News, Kelly is also seen as a politician with "hawkish positions" on immigration, which could potentially be advantageous for voters who agree with his stances.

Alternately, Kelly has a history of opposing certain decisions from the Biden-Harris administration, which could hurt his chances of being chosen for the Harris ticket. The Detroit News also reported on Kelly's past viewpoints about labor and unions, quoting a "concern" from United Auto Workers President Shawn Fain that Kelly "hadn't publicly backed the PRO Act earlier."

Andy Beshear

Hometown: Louisville, Kentucky

Age: 46, turning 47 later this year (November 29, 1977) — 14 years younger than Harris

Early Life:Andy Beshear was born in Louisville, Kentucky. Growing up, he went to prestigious universities and studied political science. His father, Steve Beshear, was also a lawyer and politician who served as Kentucky Governor between 2007 and 2015. Prior to getting into politics himself, Andy Beshear had a successful legal career and worked for various law firms in different states.

Andy Beshear's Political Career

Incumbent: Kentucky Governor

Start Date: December 10, 2019

In 2015, Beshear faced a tight race against Republican opponent Whitney Westerfield to become Attorney General of Kentucky — which Beshear managed to win by a small margin. Beshear then ran in the Kentucky gubernatorial election in 2018, and not only did he win, but he was also reelected in 2023 by a margin considered by The Advocate as a "landslide."

Beshear's time as Kentucky Governor is lauded for reducing unemployment rates and efficiently managing the state budget. He's also made significant progress in expanding access to healthcare.

Where does Andy Beshear stand on LGBTQ+ rights?

GLAAD's assessment of Beshear's track record on LGBTQ+ rights is pretty positive. For instance, he has spoken out against discrimination based on a person's sexuality and/or gender identity, while also vetoing a Republican bill that attempted to place further regulations in the lives of trans youth.

It's also worth highlighting that Beshear declared in campaign ads from 2023 that he's "never supported gender reassignment surgery for kids — and those procedures don't happen here in Kentucky." For context, The Advocate has noted that "genital surgeries are hardly ever performed on minors anywhere."

The pros & cons of Andy Beshear as Kamala Harris' VP pick.

Many political pundits believe that Beshear has a significant appeal to blue-collar workers and can transcend party lines, as explained by NBC News. Generally speaking, Beshear could be an asset to the Harris campaign in several swing states — making him the most obvious choice to oppose Trump's running mate, Vance, in this 2024 presidential election.

With that said, there are a few concerns about Beshear being picked as Harris' VP candidate, such as his changing viewpoints on abortion rights. This will be a huge topic in this election cycle due to the recent overturning of Roe v. Wade, and Beshear has been criticized before by pro-choice advocates (via NBC News).