At 77, if former Vice President Joe Biden, the presumed Democratic presidential candidate, wins the 2020 presidential election, he would be the oldest person ever elected president, surpassing President Donald Trump who set that mark in 2016 at the age of 70. And Biden has
did not commit to run for a second term if he is to win in November.
Biden has already made history by committing to choosing a female wife to run. Fortunately for him, there are a number of talented and experienced women who are legitimate candidates for the video. We believe California Senator Kamala Harris, Ambassador Val Demings and former National Security Adviser Susan Rice should have been at the top of Biden’s list.
There is a consensus that Biden should choose a woman of color. University of Virginia by Professor Larry Sabato
crystal ball ranks all five of Biden’s best vice presidential elections as women of color, and Harris, Demings and Illinois Senator Tammy Duckworth is leading the way. USA Today Jill Lawrence
claims that Biden should choose Harris or Demings.
We agree with Perry Bacon’s 538’s
assessment that the choice of a Black Woman is an important recognition of both descriptive (how much the candidate looks like the electorate) and symbolic representation (as the candidate is an example of an idea that resonates with the electorate). Such a choice would likely spark positive perceptions of Biden among the Democratic base – a base ruled by racial unrest and protests across the country. Failure to do so could reduce voter turnout among marginal voters which could prove costly in close competition.
Other factors influencing the process of electing a vice president include: counterbalance, geography, and qualifications. Harris, Demings and Rice are able to meet all of these criteria.
The counterweight most often acted as a means of balancing ideology on the map – linking the moderate to the more conservative or liberal candidate and vice versa. More recently, candidates have other factors in mind such as age, race, gender, and religion. The election of Biden by former President Barack Obama was one of the means to balance age, race and experience.
Geography is valued in the way that the election of a vice president can improve the chances of tickets being given to the states that are necessary for the election college to win. While research suggests they are running friends
they rarely carry the state for a ticket, this is an account that all campaigns take into account. Choosing Harris, Demings, or Rice could increase population response in important urban areas with large agile states, such as Charlotte, Cleveland, Detroit, Miami, Milwaukee, Philadelphia, and so on.
The nominee’s qualifications are critical as they are one heart away from becoming president. Voters must have confidence that a fellow runner is ready for a task if the opportunity arises. Biden’s advanced age and lack of commitment to a potential second term make his choice truly hereditary.
Harris, Demings and Rice are eligible for the presidency and could take office on the first day if needed – and that is perhaps the most important reason why they should be seriously considered. All have experience at the federal level and each confirms important frameworks relating to the fight against the Trump-Pence card.
Harris proved particularly impressive at the Senate Judiciary Committee confirmation rallies (especially with Attorney General Bill Barr and Supreme Court Attorney Brett Kavanaugh). She also ran for the Democratic Party’s 2020 presidential nomination and successfully ran for attorney general and U.S. senator in California, a state with
the fifth largest economy worldwide and 40 million inhabitants.
Although Demings had a relatively short political career, it is very impressive. She played an important role as an implementation manager in the Senate v. Senate trial and council from the important state of Florida. Demings rose through the ranks and became
Orlando Police Department Chief before he was elected to the American House. Harris and Demings ’first-hand experience of criminal justice would be helpful when addressing potential police reforms in the policy area that would likely be a major area by 2020.
Although Rice has never held election office, she possesses a wealth of high-level political expertise after being employed in the Bill Clinton and Obama administrations. Her experience as a national security adviser and as an ambassador to the United Nations throughout Obama’s presidency provides Rice with qualifications at the highest levels of both domestic and international affairs.
The ability of Democrats to show colored voters in November is crucial and one of the keys to democratic victory. This is especially important given that the eye
9 out of 10 African Americans mostly vote for Democrats.
It is significant that the African-American turnout in 2016 fell for the first time in a generation, falling nationally
7 percentage points from 2012 to 2016, according to the Pew Research Center. The decrease is particularly pronounced in several critical states of momentum.
According to
analysis of the Center for American Progress, African-American turnout fell by 19 points in Wisconsin, 10 points in Ohio and 9 points in North Carolina. Although less pronounced declines were recorded in Michigan, Florida and Pennsylvania, the white turnout actually increased.
critical conditions, Trump turned around
Michigan, Wisconsin, Florida and Pennsylvania from Obama’s column to his own, defeating each of those states by about 1 percentage point or less. Less than 80,000 votes (out of more than 13 million votes) in
Michigan.
Pennsylvania, i
Wisconsin made a distinction between the Trump presidency and Hillary Clinton. This underscores the importance of each voice in these critical states.
Choosing Harris, Demings or Rice would make a convincing statement in this turbulent time and serve as a balance for Biden. Merging a woman of color with a 77-year-old white man will not only create history, but could also encourage turnout among African Americans similar to those we saw in 2008 and 2012 – which Democrats should probably happen to secure victory in 2020.
