Twenty-four hours after President Biden’s blockbuster announcement that he was dropping his re-election bid, speculation is soaring over whom Vice President Kamala Harris will choose as her running mate.

The president endorsed Harris immediately after suspending his own campaign, which ignited a surge of endorsements by Democratic governors, senators, House members and other party leaders in backing the vice president to succeed Biden as the party’s 2024 standard-bearer.

As Harris moves toward securing the presidential nomination, the running mate race is igniting. And populating the list of possible contenders are plenty of politicians who were thought to have national ambitions in 2028.

Here are 10 top Democrats – in alphabetical order – whose names have been floated in the past 24 hours as potential Harris running mates.

Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear

The 46-year-old Beshear was elected attorney general in 2015 and four years later won election as governor in deep red Kentucky.

Last November, he was re-elected by five points in a state Biden lost by 26 points in 2020.

Beshear is following in his father’s footsteps. Steve Beshear won election and re-election as Kentucky governor in 2007 and 2011.

The younger Beshear has been effective in keeping his distance from the national party by focusing on state issues and highlighting economic progress and his handling of natural disasters. But he’s also spotlighted his support for abortion rights and his progress on health care and education.

He didn’t rule out serving as running mate in an interview Monday on MSNBC’s ‘Morning Joe,’ saying ‘the only way I would consider something other than this current job is if I believed I could further help my people and to help this country.’

Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg

The former South Bend, Indiana, mayor went from long shot to a top contender for the 2020 Democratic presidential nomination.

As transportation secretary, the 42-year-old Buttigieg has been one of Biden’s most visible Cabinet members, often speaking out on behalf of the administration in TV interviews.

Buttigieg, a Rhodes scholar who also served in the war in Afghanistan, made history as the first openly gay person confirmed to a presidential Cabinet position.

North Carolina Gov. Roy Cooper

Cooper, 67, served 16 years as North Carolina attorney general before winning election in 2016 and re-election in 2020 as governor, during the same years that former President Trump carried the Tar Heel State for the GOP in the presidential contests.

The governor is term-limited and was prevented from running for re-election this year.

Cooper has been a champion of abortion rights in a state where the Republicans dominate the legislature. He’s also focused on expanding Medicaid.

Sen. Mark Kelly of Arizona

The 60-year-old Kelly, a former Navy pilot and NASA astronaut, has represented swing state Arizona in the Senate since 2020.

He won a special election to succeed the late GOP Sen. John McCain, becoming the first Democrat in four decades to hold the seat. Kelly easily won re-election in 2022.

As a border state Democrat, Kelly has highlighted his differences with the Biden-Harris administration when it comes to combating the influx of migrants over the southern border with Mexico. That could come in handy as the Trump campaign and Republicans repeatedly blast Biden and Harris over the issue of border security.

Kelly is the husband of former Rep. Gabby Giffords of Arizona, who was severely injured in a 2011 shooting and has become a prominent gun safety advocate. 

Maryland Gov. Wes Moore

Moore is a 45-year-old Army combat veteran and Rhodes scholar who, as a first-time candidate in 2022, won a landslide election as governor in the heavily blue state of Maryland.

Moore, who made history as the third Black candidate ever elected governor in the U.S., is seen as a rising star in the Democratic Party.

California Gov. Gavin Newsom

Newwom, 56, is one of the most high-profile Democratic governors in the nation.

The former San Francisco mayor and California lieutenant governor won election as governor in 2018, easily beat back a recall attempt in 2021 and cruised to a landslide re-election two years ago.

While there’s been plenty of speculation that Newsom has national ambitions in 2028, he’s been a top Biden surrogate this election cycle.

Newsom would face a major hurdle if named as Harris’ running mate because they both hail from California, and the 12th Amendment to the Constitution states that presidential and vice presidential candidates running on the same national ticket ‘shall not be an inhabitant of the same state with themselves.’

Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker

The 59-year-old Pritzker, who’s in his second term as Illinois governor, has been a vocal Biden surrogate in criticizing Trump.

Pritzker, a billionaire whose family started the Hyatt hotel empire, has the ability to self-fund his campaigns.

The governor has been outspoken in fighting for women’s reproductive rights, and has signed into law a slew of prgressive measures, including an assault weapons ban and a minimum wage increase.

Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro

Shapiro, 51, served six years as Pennsylvania’s attorney general before winning election as governor in 2022.

If named to the ticket, it’s likely the governor would give the Democrats a boost in Pennsylvania, a crucial northeastern battleground state.

Shapiro could also make history as the first Jewish vice president in the nation’s history.

Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz

The 60-year-old Walz is in his second term as governor of Minnesota, a state that Democrats have reliably won in presidential elections but which is now considered to be competitive.

Walz can also showcase a slew of progressive policy victories, including protecting abortion rights, legalizing recreational marijuana and restricting gun access.

Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer

Whitmer is another high-profile swing state governor and top Biden surrogate who’s taken the fight to Trump.

The 52-year-old Whitmer was considered to be on Biden’s 2020 short-list for running mate.

But when asked Monday if she would would serve as the Democrats’ vice presidential nominee if asked, Whitmer told reporters’I am not leaving Michigan.’ 

Vice President Kamala Harris racked up a key endorsement on Monday morning from Gov. Wes Moore, D-Md., who is considered a rising star within the Democratic Party. 

‘I had lengthy conversations with both the President and the Vice President yesterday, and I offered my full support for Kamala Harris’ candidacy to both of them directly,’ Moore said in a statement. ‘Vice President Harris has the experience, record, vision, and wisdom to unify the country.’

‘President Biden selected her to serve by his side because he knew she could lead the nation. She will have the unique ability to energize the Democratic Party base and mobilize a unique coalition, and we must rally around her and elect her to serve as the next President of the United States.’

President Biden announced his decision to suspend his re-election campaign on Sunday amid mounting pressure from Democrats for him to do so. He subsequently endorsed Harris as his successor, and she quickly accepted the opportunity. 

‘I am honored to have the President’s endorsement and my intention is to earn and win this nomination,’ she said in a statement announcing her hope to be the Democratic nominee. 

While some lawmakers and prominent Democrats followed Biden’s lead and endorsed Harris, there were many who held off. Several Democrats issued statements on Biden’s decision without even mentioning Harris. 

However, on Monday morning, backers for Harris began pouring in. 

Moore, who was elected governor in 2022, was speculated as a potential contender for the Democratic nomination with Biden’s withdrawal, but he put any discussions to rest with his choice to support Harris. 

He is now likely to be considered as a running mate for her, given his popularity. 

After Biden stepped aside, Harris’s campaign said it pulled in nearly $50 million in donations. ‘Since the President endorsed Vice President Harris yesterday afternoon, everyday Americans have given $49.6 million in grassroots donations to her campaign,’ a spokesperson told Fox News Digital. 

Another who could be considered as a vice presidential nominee for Harris is Gov. Andy Beshear, D-Ky., who also endorsed her. He was asked on MSNBC’s ‘Morning Joe’ on Monday whether he would consider it, and he confirmed he would ‘listen’ and did not shut the door. 

President Biden’s decision to stand down from re-election offers Democrats an unprecedented opportunity to reset this election.

At this hour, Vice President Kamala Harris is the most likely nominee.

Many party leaders have endorsed her candidacy, and no other candidate with an appreciable chance of winning the nomination is running.

Harris is known for asking voters to ‘see what is possible, unburdened by what has been.’ Her probable elevation to the top of the ticket allows her party to do that. But it is too early to tell whether she would perform better against former President Trump in the general election than Biden or any other candidate.

That means Biden’s decision to drop out may have been guided more by his own weakness than Harris’ strength. In the meantime, while Harris is unburdened by age, polls show she is burdened by the administration’s unpopularity.

Expect Harris to hold on to issues Democrats are winning and reposition the party on issues they are losing. The race restarts today.

Wait for new polls before drawing conclusions about Harris or any other Democratic candidate

Some recent polls have asked voters whether they would support a Democratic candidate other than Biden.

So far, however, poll respondents are being asked to evaluate a hypothetical scenario.

Voters are about to hear a lot more about the new candidate’s strengths and weaknesses.

Other voters will just be getting to know them.

These factors will all impact their standing with the electorate.

Harris is likely to have the least impact on the Democratic ticket’s standing, since her position as vice president means voters are more familiar with her than any other possible candidate.

However, polls cannot yet show whether her elevation changes the race.

We will know more in a couple of weeks

Even after voters are aware that someone new is the nominee, it will take time to conduct polls and gather enough of them to understand how the race has changed.

Think of this as a three-step process:

Polls must be conducted fully after the news broke; the further from that date they are conducted the more likely they are to capture voters’ informed views of Harris or another candidate.Pollsters must ‘get into the field’ by designing reliable surveys and collecting responses from their sample of voters over several days. Then they must process and release the results.Multiple pollsters must release their surveys so analysts can account for outliers. An ideal mix would include national and battleground state polls.

A good rule of thumb is to wait a couple of weeks.

The race was still competitive, with early signs that Biden was struggling in battleground states

Polls conducted after Biden’s fatal debate performance show he was running a close race in national polls.

However, he was beginning to struggle in the most competitive states, narrowing his path to victory.

Biden had support from 46% of registered voters in an average of five post-debate polls, including the Fox News Poll, with Trump at 47%. The margin between them is statistically insignificant. (The polls tested both Biden and Harris against Trump.)

In the battleground states, a somewhat clearer picture was emerging.

Biden was locked in a tight battle in Pennsylvania and Wisconsin, two crucial rust belt states on his pathway to 270 electoral college votes (NYT/Siena, AARP).

He was also within the margin of error in Georgia, where Black voters held the key to Biden’s 2020 election victory (AJC).

In Michigan though, another Rust Belt state crucial to his bid, a poll released yesterday showed Trump leading Biden 49% to 42% in a head-to-head matchup; a seven point difference between the two (Detroit Free Press).

Democrats would have been anxious about a recent poll in Virginia that had Biden at 46% to Trump’s 44%, a two point difference that is well within the poll’s margin of sampling error (NYT/Siena). Biden won the state by 10 points in 2020.

Polls are snapshots in time. They do not account for the challenges that Biden would have faced in the final 100 days of the campaign, including another presidential debate and a rigorous campaign schedule, all while serving as leader of the free world.

Polling and these factors all likely played a role in Democrats’ thinking about his re-election odds and Biden’s decision.

Harris polls about the same as Biden, including among key groups, but she is viewed more favorably

On the surface, Harris’ odds look about the same.

In the same five post-debate national polls, the vice president ties Trump at 47% apiece among registered voters.

That is two points higher than Biden’s number in the same polls.

Her position is similar across three competitive state polls that tested both Biden and Harris.

In Georgia, Trump is ahead of Harris, 51% to 46%; Harris adds a point on Biden’s number, but overall the gap between the two candidates is wider (AJC).
In Pennsylvania, Trump edges Harris 48% to 46%, a two-point improvement on Biden and within the margin of error (NYT/Siena).
In Virginia, Harris gets 48% versus Trump’s 44%, another two-point improvement on Biden and within the margin of error (NYT/Siena).

These numbers suggest that today, a polarized electorate views Harris similarly to Biden. His values are hers; so are his accomplishments and failures.

There is also no meaningful difference between Biden and Harris’ support with key voter groups in a matchup against Trump. From last week’s Fox News Poll:

Black voters (Biden 69%, Harris 69%)Women voters (Biden 51%, Harris 52%)Voters under 30 (Biden 47%, Harris 51%)Independents (Biden 47%, Harris 48%)Moderates (Biden 53%, Harris 55%)

(Fox News Poll, July 7-10; MOE: Black ±9, Women ±4, Under 30 ±7.5, Independents ±7, Moderates ±6)

That means, so far, her pathway to 270 electoral college votes looks about the same as Biden’s.

Voters view Harris more favorably than Biden.

As the same Fox News Poll revealed, 44% of voters have a favorable opinion of Harris, while 54% view her unfavorably. 

Those numbers are similar to Trump’s (-12) and better than Biden’s (-20).

Harris, 59 years old, does not have Biden’s age issue. Voters were already concerned about it before the debate; those concerns exploded after it.

That is likely helping her ratings.

Many unknowns, but new signs of life among Democratic strategists and continuing enthusiasm in the GOP

Again, these results reflect Harris’ current standing, with voters knowing her as the vice president on Biden’s ticket. Her polling, path to 270 and favorability could all change in the weeks ahead.

It is possible, for example, that Democrats will become more enthusiastic about their nominee.

The Democratic fundraising platform ActBlue said yesterday was their ‘biggest fundraising day of the 2024 cycle,’ with Harris raising $47 million since her campaign launch.

Democratic strategists are also much more enthusiastic about the race than before, though Republicans have been for over a year, and they also seem energized by the news.

Other Democrats poll similarly to Harris

July’s Fox News survey also asked about California Gov. Gavin Newsom and Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer, two candidates who the media floated as possible Biden replacements.

(Newsom has endorsed Harris for president, and Whitmer will reportedly do the same).

For both candidates, the race is a dead heat against Trump.

Democrats had not yet formally nominated Biden, so the existing process allows for a different candidate to compete in the general

No presidential candidate has ever announced that they were not seeking another term this close to Election Day.

However, Democrats have not yet formally nominated Biden, which means they can support a new candidate who will appear on general election ballots in all 50 states.

This week, the party is likely to affirm that their existing nominating process will continue as planned.

Under that process, delegates were awarded to candidates after the primaries earlier this year; almost all of them were pledged to Biden. The only step left is for delegates to formally nominate a candidate in the party’s ‘roll call vote.’

This is just like the roll call vote that Republicans held at their convention last week.

The candidate who gets a majority of votes from delegates becomes the nominee. Again, it is most likely, but not guaranteed, to be Harris.

The most pressing question is who she will choose as her running mate. Possible contenders include moderate Govs. Andy Beshear, Roy Cooper and Josh Shapiro.

Democrats must also decide when to hold that roll call vote.

Most recently, the party committee in charge of that process said it would happen in the first seven days of August.

A historic election cycle continues

The Power Rankings forecast was already on hold after Biden’s fatal debate performance and the attempted assassination of former President Trump, another two political earthquakes in this historic election cycle.

Now, Democrats will get to know a new presidential candidate.

Once the party finalizes its nominating process, it is on to the Democratic National Convention, which begins August 19 in Chicago.

(Convention chair Minyon Moore reaffirmed that date yesterday.)

Democrats must also soon decide what to do about further presidential debates.

The Biden and Trump campaigns previously agreed to a presidential debate on ABC in September, which, after Biden’s decision, Trump is calling to be held on Fox News. Harris had also agreed to an August vice presidential debate on CBS and Trump to one on Fox News, possibly at an HBCU. Trump also previously agreed to a presidential debate with Fox News in October.

Whatever happens, Fox News has Democracy ’24 covered.

A list of former President Obama’s allies and former advisers helped lead the charge in calling on President Biden to drop out of the 2024 race before he officially ended his campaign on Sunday afternoon.

Biden officially dropped out of the 2024 race after weeks of increasing pressure from traditional Democrat allies to bow out after his disastrous debate performance against former President Trump last month, which put concerns surrounding his mental acuity and 81 years of age under increasing scrutiny. 

‘My fellow Democrats, I have decided not to accept the nomination and to focus all my energies on my duties as President for the remainder of my term,’ Biden posted on X after he dropped out of the race on Sunday afternoon.

‘My very first decision as the party nominee in 2020 was to pick Kamala Harris as my Vice President. And it’s been the best decision I’ve made. Today I want to offer my full support and endorsement for Kamala to be the nominee of our party this year. Democrats — it’s time to come together and beat Trump. Let’s do this,’ he said in a separate social media post.

Among some of the most noteworthy voices calling on Biden to bow out were allies of Obama’s, including his former adviser, David Axelrod, who said this month that Biden is ‘not winning this race.’ Biden served as Obama’s vice president from 2009 to 2017. 

‘There are certain immutable facts of life,’ Axelrod said in an interview with CNN while discussing Biden’s age and leadership. ‘Those were painfully obvious on that debate stage. The president just … hasn’t come to grips with it. He’s not winning this race.’

Axelrod formerly served as Obama’s chief campaign strategist, and he said Biden is used to fighting ‘his way back from political defeats and against the odds.’

‘So, his psyche is that he can beat anybody and any long odds,’ he said this month. ‘What he can’t beat is Father Time.’ 

‘And that’s really the concern here. It’s not about his record,’ Axelrod continued.

Axelrod was soon followed by actor George Clooney calling on Biden to drop out of the race in a bombshell op-ed that was published just weeks after the Hollywood star co-hosted Biden, alongside Obama, for a ritzy campaign event in Los Angeles. Clooney has long had a personal friendship with Obama and former first lady Michelle Obama, including vacationing with the first couple in previous years.

‘It’s devastating to say it, but the Joe Biden I was with three weeks ago at the fundraiser was not the Joe ‘big F-ing deal’ Biden of 2010,’ Clooney wrote in a New York Times op-ed. ‘He wasn’t even the Joe Biden of 2020. He was the same man we all witnessed at the debate.’

Another ally in Obama’s orbit, Jon Favreau, who served as former director of speech writing for Obama, also called on Biden to drop out of the race this month, saying he attended the fundraiser in L.A. with Clooney and Obama and saw Biden’s state of mental acuity.

‘It was not surprising to any of us who were at the fundraiser. I was there. Clooney was exactly right, and every single person I talked to at the fundraiser thought the same thing, except for the people working for Joe Biden, or at least they didn’t say that,’ Jon Favreau said during an appearance on CNN this month. 

‘I remember my wife, Emily, turned to me after the fundraiser and said, ‘What are we going to do?’ And I said, ‘Well, there is a debate in a week. Either he’ll do well in the debate, and we’ll think he was just tired because he flew all the way back from Europe, and that’ll be that, or he’ll be like this at the debate and then the whole country will be talking about it. So, here we are.’

Favreau, alongside former Obama advisers Jon Lovett and Tommy Vietor – known collectively as the ‘Obama Bros’ when they worked in the White House – dedicated the majority of a podcast episode of ‘Pod Save America’ this month to trashing Biden. 

‘I thought it was bad, and at times very hard to watch,’ Vietor said, referring to Biden’s sit-down interview with ABC’s George Stephanopoulos after Biden’s debate performance. 

Vietor said it ‘seems like a clear-cut choice that we’d have a better chance with someone else,’ while Lovett added that Biden wasn’t ‘delivering the message effectively.’

Up until Sunday afternoon, Biden and his campaign remained adamant that the president would not bow out of the race. 

Obama has remained relatively silent while Biden weighed his options for the election, coming to Biden’s defense after his recent debate performance but not responding to media reports that he was working behind the scenes to promote Biden’s exit.

‘Bad debate nights happen. Trust me, I know. But this election is still a choice between someone who has fought for ordinary folks his entire life and someone who only cares about himself. Between someone who tells the truth; who knows right from wrong and will give it to the American people straight — and someone who lies through his teeth for his own benefit. Last night didn’t change that, and it’s why so much is at stake in November,’ he posted on X at the time. 

As media reports circulated that Obama was working ‘behind the scenes’ to oust Biden from the race, the 44th president remained mum, not denying the reports. Politico reported that Clooney even gave Obama a ‘heads-up’ that his op-ed calling on Biden to bow out of the race was set to publish, with Obama reportedly not objecting to the opinion piece.

Obama released a statement on Sunday commending Biden for his work in the Oval Office, but he did not tip his hand as to who he believes should pick up the mantle now that the president is no longer running for re-election. Biden, as well as the Clintons and other powerful Democrats, announced their endorsement of Vice President Harris shortly after Biden’s announcement.

‘We will be navigating uncharted waters in the days ahead. But I have extraordinary confidence that the leaders of our party will be able to create a process from which an outstanding nominee emerges. I believe that Joe Biden’s vision of a generous, prosperous, and united America that provides opportunity for everyone will be on full display at the Democratic Convention in August. And I expect that every single one of us are prepared to carry that message of hope and progress forward into November and beyond,’ Obama wrote on Sunday in a lengthy statement. 

‘Joe Biden has been one of America’s most consequential presidents, as well as a dear friend and partner to me. Today, we’ve also been reminded — again — that he’s a patriot of the highest order,’ Obama added. 

Amid the speculation that Biden would drop out, the Associated Press reported that Obama, Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer and former Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi were reportedly working in the background to encourage Biden to drop out due to concerns he could not defeat Trump. 

Pelosi notably suggested this month that Biden’s previously adamant resolve to remain in the race was not his final decision.

‘It’s up to the president to decide if he is going to run,’ she said this month on MSNBC. ‘We’re all encouraging him to make that decision because time is running short.’

Obama had joined Biden for a handful of campaign events since last year, but long before joining Biden on the campaign trail – or even endorsing his former running mate – Obama cautioned Biden against seeking the White House, citing fears that the campaign could ‘damage his legacy,’ according to a 2019 New York Times report.

‘You don’t have to do this, Joe, you really don’t,’ Obama reportedly told Biden in 2019.

‘Win or lose, they needed to make sure Mr. Biden did not ‘embarrass himself’ or ‘damage his legacy’ during the campaign,’ the New York Times reported, citing two people with knowledge of the conversation.

Biden had made a series of gaffes before becoming Obama’s running mate in 2008, including in 2007 when Biden was about to declare his own run for the White House. On the eve of his announcement, Biden described Obama to a reporter as ‘the first mainstream African American who is articulate and bright and clean and a nice-looking guy.’

Obama had remained coy about who he would endorse in the 2020 election, saying he would not back anyone during the primary. As Democrat contenders such as Pete Buttigieg, Sen. Elizabeth Warren and Sen. Bernie Sanders dropped out of the primary race and cleared a path for Biden, Obama endorsed his former veep in August 2020.

As Democrats suss out who they will officially nominate for the 2024 election, some in the president’s orbit have pinned blame on his failed 2024 race on donors and ‘electeds.’

‘Now that the donors and electeds have pushed out the only candidate who has ever beaten Trump, it’s time to end the political fantasy games and unite behind the only veteran of a national campaign — our outstanding @vp @KamalaHarris!! Let’s get real and win in November!,’ former White House chief of staff Ron Klain posted on X. 

After Biden’s announcement, Republicans have demanded the president resign from office, arguing that if he is unable to run for another term, he’s unable to fulfill his duties as president for the rest of his term.

‘If Joe Biden is not fit to run for President, he is not fit to serve as President. He must resign the office immediately. November 5 cannot arrive soon enough,’ House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., said in a statement on Sunday.

‘If the Democrat party has deemed Joe Biden unfit to run for re-election, he’s certainly unfit to control our nuclear codes,’ House Majority Whip Tom Emmer, R-Minn., added. ‘Biden must step down from office immediately.’

Trump’s running mate, Ohio Sen. JD Vance, also called on Biden to resign hours before he officially announced he was dropping out.

‘If Joe Biden ends his reelection campaign, how can he justify remaining President? Not running for reelection would be a clear admission that President Trump was right all along about Biden not being mentally fit enough to serve as Commander-in-Chief. There is no middle ground,’ Vance tweeted Sunday morning.

Fox News Digital’s Brandon Gillespie and Liz Elkind contributed to this report.