Kamala Harris Might Be Making a Running Mate Mistake

Selecting Pennsylvania Governor Josh Shapiro as her 2024 running mate could damage Kamala Harris‘s presidential bid, according to a prominent political scientist.

Speaking to Newsweek, Mark Shanahan, who teaches at the University of Surrey in the U.K., warned selecting Shapiro as her vice-presidential candidate risks damaging Harris with the Democratic left and younger voters, due to his positions on school vouchers and the ongoing Gaza war.

The past few days have seen a surge in speculation that Harris will choose Shapiro as her potential VP, and the governor is the strong favorite for the role, according to betting website PredictIt. Shapiro on Thursday announced he was pulling out of a planned fundraising trip to Long Island, New York, ahead of a rally Harris is due to hold in Philadelphia on Tuesday.

In his interview with Newsweek Shanahan said: “Shapiro balances the ticket as a white male, and his record for getting things done in Pennsylvania, a must-win state, is definitely in his favor.

“However, his position on school vouchers which feels more Republican than Democrat, and his strong support for Israel’s prosecution of the war in Gaza may cause disquiet, particularly among the progressive wing of the very broad Democrat tent.

“Harris needs an alliance of women, the young and minorities to win in November. Shapiro may not play quite so well with the young.”

Shapiro has angered some progressives by backing taxpayer-funded private school vouchers in Pennsylvania. In late July the Network for Public Education Action, an education advocacy campaign group, organized an open letter urging Harris not to select Shapiro as he had “education policies mirroring Project 2025.”

Project 2025 is a 900-page policy program organized by right-wing think tank The Heritage Foundation which is intended as a Republican administration playbook.

Shapiro, who is Jewish, has spoken out strongly against what he claims has been antisemitic rhetoric at some pro-Palestinian protests in recent months, comparing it to the Ku Klux Klan.

Speaking to CNN in April, as college protests took place across the country, he said: “We have to query whether or not we would tolerate this if this were people dressed up in KKK outfits or KKK regalia, making comments about people who are African American in our communities.

“I think we have to be careful about setting any kind of double standard here on our campuses.”

Shanahan also argued that while Shapiro may be favorite to be Harris’s running mate he is still only one of five serious candidates for the role. He said: “While Josh Shapiro may be the front-runner among commentators, he’s probably still only one of five possible choices as Harris’ VP candidate pick.

“Don’t rule out All-American hero Mark Kelly or Kentucky Governor Andy Beshear, while Tim Walz and Pete Buttigieg still have a chance.”

Newsweek contacted representatives of Vice President Kamala Harris and Governor Josh Shapiro for comment via email on Friday.

Thomas Gift, director of the Centre on U.S. Politics at University College London, told Newsweek selecting Shapiro as her running mate could put Pennsylvania “in play” for Harris.

He said: “While most polling has shown Trump leading Pennsylvania by a nontrivial margin, Harris picking Shapiro puts PA’s 19 electoral votes in play—pure and simple … Even if Trump wins Pennsylvania, selecting Shapiro would force him to expend significantly more resources in the Keystone State to do it, siphoning off valuable cash and energy from other battleground states.”