The Giffords event in Philadelphia on Thursday — just a few miles from Shapiro’s home in neighboring Montgomery County — had long been planned, Giffords aides said.
Still, it won’t be the last Harris campaign event where her vice presidential pick is a prominent subject, or where potential vice presidential picks campaign for Harris in a state both sides have said they must win in November.
On Monday, Shapiro and Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer were scheduled to headline a campaign rally for Harris in suburban Philadelphia, while in North Carolina on Thursday, Gov. Roy Cooper talked about Harris’ many visits as vice president to the swing state won by Trump in both 2016 and 2020.
Cooper and Whitmer are also under consideration for joining the ticket.
Cooper, speaking in downtown Raleigh, said that “there are a lot of good people” Harris could choose as her running mate, but he wouldn’t address directly his prospects to join her ticket.
“There are a lot of people that she can choose. She’s going to make the right choice,” Cooper said after listing why he backed Harris for president. “I just want her to choose the person that gives her the best chance to win. And there’ll be a lot of factors that go into that,” Cooper added.
Cooper took a swipe at Trump’s vice presidential pick in Ohio Sen. JD Vance, saying: “It’s pretty clear that Donald Trump chose someone in his own image — sort of a Mini Me” — a reference to a smaller clone of “Dr. Evil” in the “Austin Powers” film franchise.
Another leading contender, Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear, deflected questions at his regular news conference at the state Capitol on Thursday about how Harris was choosing a running mate, but Beshear spoke more freely about the presidential campaign ahead than he usually does. He started with a statement saying he was honored to be considered for the ticket, but asked later if he thought Trump was a threat to democracy, he said: “Yes, I do.”
Beshear said he would do everything he could to get Harris elected, regardless of whether he’s her running mate.
“I think what’s needed right now is a ticket that not only can win but again can govern and can govern in a way that’s for everyone,” he said. “We can’t keep going with this everything being red or blue or Democrat or Republican. Everything right now from the car you buy to the beer you drink, somebody tries to make partisan and say you have to pick a team.”
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Associated Press reporters Gary D. Robertson in Raleigh, North Carolina, and Bruce Schreiner in Frankfort, Kentucky, contributed to this report.
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