Biden’s out. Is Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear now a VP candidate?
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Is Gov. Andy Beshear in play for Vice President?
President Joe Biden announced July 21, 2024, he would be bowing out of his re-election bid and endorsed Vice President Kamala Harris as the new nominee. Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear’s name has been tossed around as Harris’s potential running mate.
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President Joe Biden is out. Is Gov. Andy Beshear in play?
In one of the most shocking moves in American political history, Biden announced Sunday afternoon he is abandoning his campaign to win a second term less than a month before his party’s convention. Under pressure from fellow Democrats in the House and Senate, the man who defeated then-President Donald Trump in 2020 capitulated to those who predict he couldn’t defeat Trump once more in November.
Now, Beshear, the popular two-term governor from Kentucky, quite possibly could land a prominent role in the what’s-next-for-the-Democrats sweepstakes, numerous Democrats, national pundits and media outlets have predicted.
The 46-year-old’s name has long been floated as one of several Democratic governors who could become the next VP.
Biden, in Sunday’s announcement, did not identify his preferred choice for the top of the ticket. But it’s widely assumed it will be Kamala Harris, the California Democrat who has been his vice-president.
Former Kentucky U.S. representative John Yarmuth said Thursday that Beshear was one of three, alongside North Carolina Gov. Roy Cooper and Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro, in consideration.
Other news outlets have included Sen. Mark Kelly of Arizona or a non-traditional pick like former U.S. Navy admiral William McRaven.
Asked repeatedly about it during public appearances leading up to Biden’s announcement, Beshear didn’t say he was seeking addition to a then-hypothetical new ticket. He didn’t shut it down, either, saying repeatedly he would leave his current role if he felt he could “help the commonwealth even more” through another opportunity.
Beshear has the support of many across Kentucky in this endeavor.
That includes Rep. Chad Aull, a strong ally of the governor’s in the state legislature. The Lexington Democrat said the Beshear playbook used to knock off incumbent Matt Bevin in 2019 and former Attorney General Daniel Cameron four years later could appeal to more than just Kentucky’s 4.6 million residents.
“He saved countless lives during the pandemic, responded well to historic flooding and tornadoes, and all while doing that he’s led us through some of the greatest and most prosperous times in our state history,” Aull said.
“He can deliver a message of revitalization, management and hope to the American people like he’s done here in the commonwealth.”
The style with which he can deliver that message, honed over a year where the COVID-19 pandemic had him delivering live remarks every weekday, has improved significantly according to many observers. Beshear has almost perfected it, said Jason Perkey, a Kentucky Democratic operative who’s served as the executive director of state parties in South Carolina and Kansas.
“The language that he uses doesn’t sound contrived, it doesn’t sound poll-tested, it doesn’t sound like someone is giving him talking points to use. It sounds like it’s a value-centric response to the issue he’s facing,” Perkey said. “I know I sound like a ‘drunk on the Kool Aid supporter,’ but I just think it’s clear that he’s a person that genuinely wants to lead people and isn’t doing it in a selfish way,”
That ability to message, in disciplined fashion, tops the list of reasons cited for Beshear’s elevation to the national scene. Those include:
- Political victories over two Trump-endorsed candidates in gubernatorial elections, which has enamored some national politicos.
- Ability to stay on message, avoid major controversies and pursue vigorous fights when needed.
- An empathetic and uniquely “wholesome” political brand.
If Harris becomes the new Democratic nominees, which seems likely, Beshear has been mentioned frequently as a potential candidate for the VP vacancy on the ticket. The other names most commonly mentioned for vice president include Democratic governors in more politically purple states — Cooper of North Carolina and Shapiro of Pennsylvania.
Some have suggested Shapiro over Beshear for his Obama-esque speaking style and strong donor base in the populous Keystone State. Others say Cooper’s ties to Harris — reporting early this month from the New York Times called him the early favorite in the then-hypothetical scenario, citing the fact that they served as state attorneys general at the same time — could win the day.
A popular view is that Harris should pick one of the two, or another swing state politician like Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer, to gain an edge in the electoral college.
Kentucky Republicans like Jake Cox, who led the re-election campaign of Sen. Rand Paul, R-KY, and former commissioner of agriculture Ryan Quarles’ gubernatorial bid, seem to agree.
“Shapiro, Cooper and Whitmer are all battle-scarred, nationally vetted, and, most importantly, in charge of states that will decide the outcome of this election,” he said.
But some aren’t so sure that Harris, if she’s the nominee, should pick based on her replacement’s state of origin.
University of Kentucky political science professor Stephen Voss said research suggests that the vice presidential nominee’s home “doesn’t make as much difference as commentators seem to think.”
“If the Harris campaign picked based on state of origin, they’d probably be picking foolishly,” said Voss, who has served as a non-partisan political commentator for several years. He’s appeared on more than 1,000 local, national and international newscasts to discuss Kentucky’s political scene.
“Much more important — and I’m guessing the Harris advisers know this — is the chemistry between the presidential candidate and the vice presidential candidate. The main role the VP pick plays is giving us more information about the presidential nominee and what sort of president that person would make.”
“A smart presidential candidate picks a ticket mate who complements them best, not who comes from a particular location.”
So, what is the chemistry between Beshear and Harris? Observers haven’t been given many opportunities to assess.
The governor, who just made headlines with his support for rescheduling marijuana to a lower class of substance, last appeared with Harris at a roundtable on marijuana policy in Spring.
The governor’s top surrogate on the issue of abortion — Hadley Duvall, a young woman who was raped and impregnated by her stepfather and would have been unable to get an abortion if the state’s near-total ban on the procedure had been in place — recently went on MSNBC with Harris.
Duvall also shot an ad for the Biden campaign recalling her emotional story.
Though his connection with the vice president doesn’t go quite as far back as Cooper’s, Beshear has some attributes that Harris might like, according to Voss. Presidential nominees usually seek a running mate who can provide balance and broaden their appeal.
“Beshear pitches Democratic policies in a language likely to play better in red state America than Harris’s usual rhetorical approach,” Voss said.
“Beshear also would bring a different tone to how he communicates. It’s a very laid back and mellow approach to politicking, whereas Harris, in her public appearances, tends to be more frenetic and to say a lot of words.”
Anna Whites, a Frankfort attorney who works with candidates across the state, sees some of those benefits for the ticket.
However, she’s not exactly pining for Beshear to leave the state. The ticket could be better served by someone more well-known to the American public, Whites argued.
“In Kentucky, we may have a false idea that everyone knows Andy,” she said. “If it’s Harris at the top, she’ll need a male, so that does narrow the field. I just am not sure the choice would be Andy.”
One positive, she said: The fact that nothing very negative has been revealed about Beshear during his 10-year run as a candidate in the remarkably “invasive and ugly” Kentucky political scene.
“He is a kind person in many ways, he’s a great Dad, he seems to be a great husband and a faithful husband — and that’s rarer than hen’s teeth in politics,” Whites said.
“He also just looks good on TV and he speaks well off-the-cuff.”
Community reaction
Biden’s decision to drop out was something Robert Flaherty, 78, said he saw coming.
“I think he probably needed to,” Flaherty said while shopping Sunday afternoon at the Florence Mall. “I think he’s a good man, but based on my observation of how he did in the debate and his public appearances since then, I think he was struggling.”
Flaherty said he thinks the next Democratic candidate, whomever it is, will present “more of a challenge” to Trump. And he said he’d like to see Beshear not just as the vice presidential nominee, but the presidential one.
“I would rather him be on the ballot as president instead of vice president. I’m not a big fan of Kamala Harris,” Flaherty said. “I think she’s more liberal. I think Beshear tends to be more moderate.”
Flaherty said he might vote for the Democratic ticket if Beshear is the nominee for either role, but he is still mulling it over. He said he voted for neither Biden nor Trump in 2020.
Taheerah Moore James, a 41-year-old Florence resident, described politics as a bleak affair. While she said the potential nomination of Harris didn’t move her much, she did note the history that would be made if she were elected.
“There’s still so much hate against women, and Black women at that, in America,” James said. “It would be something great to see, being that I am a Black woman.”
James said she, too, would be excited if Beshear wound up on the ticket.
“I work with people with intellectual disabilities, so the company I work for deals a lot with Andy Beshear,” she said. “I like him as a person outside of what he’s done for Kentucky.”
Tim Shields, a 77-year-old Florence resident, said he voted for Trump in 2020 based on his performance in his first term, and he intends to do so again this fall.
Fields said he was disappointed Biden had dropped out of the race.
“I think he’d have been easier to beat,” Shields said. “The Democratic Party is a mess right now, so I was kind of wondering if he would stay in or not.”
Tonya Meadows, 48, of Clay City, said if Beshear joined the Democratic ticket, it would make for a tougher choice. But she would still vote for Trump, as she did in 2020.
She said Beshear is “good for Kentucky,” but her main voting issue is the southern border. “I think Trump, hopefully, will take care of a lot of that.
“I like Andy,” she said, “but it would be Trump.”
This story was originally published July 21, 2024 at 11:17 AM with the headline "Biden’s out. Is Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear now a VP candidate?."
