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2020 Democratic Party vice presidential candidate selection facts for kids

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Joe Biden picked U.S. Senator Kamala Harris as his running mate on August 11, 2020

This article talks about the people who were considered to be the next Vice President of the United States for the Democratic Party in the 2020 election.

Joe Biden, who was a former Vice President, was chosen to run for President of the United States. He promised to pick a woman as his running mate. This was a big deal because it was only the third time a major party chose a woman for Vice President. The other times were with Geraldine Ferraro in 1984 and Sarah Palin in 2008.

On August 11, 2020, Joe Biden announced that U.S. Senator Kamala Harris would be his running mate.

Choosing a Running Mate

Choosing a running mate is a very important step in a presidential campaign. It's like picking a co-captain for a big team. The process of carefully checking out potential candidates for a job is called "vetting."

The Vetting Process

The team for Biden's campaign started looking for a running mate in May 2020. They wanted to find the best person to help him lead the country. In July 2020, Biden mentioned that he was considering four Black women for the role.

Biden first hoped to announce his choice around August 5, 2020. However, the announcement was moved to before the Democratic National Convention, which started on August 16. News reports on August 10 said the announcement would happen on August 11 or 12.

Some people criticized how Biden's campaign handled the search. They felt there was unfair treatment towards Black women and that there was sexism involved.

Top Candidates for Vice President

In June and July 2020, several news organizations reported on the top people being considered. These individuals were seen as the most likely choices for the Vice President role.

Other People Considered

Some other individuals were also looked at by the Biden campaign. However, it was not clear if they continued to be considered in the later stages.

After the George Floyd protests, Senator Amy Klobuchar faced criticism. This was because of how she handled cases involving police misconduct when she was a prosecutor. On June 18, she announced that she was no longer seeking to be considered. She asked Biden to choose a woman of color instead.

People Who Said No

Some people publicly stated that they did not want to be considered for the Vice President role. They chose not to go through the vetting process.

What People Thought: Polls

Polls are surveys that ask many people their opinions. They help us understand who people prefer for a certain job. Here's what some polls showed about who people wanted as Vice President.

Vice presidential polling
Poll source Date(s)
administered		 Sample
size
Stacey Abrams
Tammy Baldwin
Karen Bass
Keisha Lance Bottoms
Catherine Cortez Masto
Val Demings
Tammy Duckworth
Kamala Harris
Amy Klobuchar
Michelle Lujan Grisham
Gina Raimondo
Susan Rice
Elizabeth Warren
Gretchen Whitmer
Others
Undecided
The Economist/YouGov August 2–4, 2020 600 (RV) 6% 1% 1% 3% – 3% 8% 22% – 0% – 11% 21% 3% 3% 19%
Yahoo News/YouGov July 28–30, 2020 1088 (RV) 8% 3% 3% 5% – 4% 6% 25% – 2% 2% 14% 22% 5% – –
Hill-HarrisX July 20–21, 2020 947 (RV) 6% 3% – 3% – 3% 4% 15% – 4% – 12% 16% 4% 30% –
Data for Progress July 20, 2020 538 (RV) 8% 3% 1% 10% – 3% 6% 21% – 2% – 6% 23% 4% – 13%
Yahoo! News/YouGov Jun 9–10, 2020 1288 (RV) 14% – – 6% – 8% – 24% 14% – – – 30% 5% – –
Monmouth Jun 1–9, 2020 2240 (LV) 10% – – 2% – 7% – 28% 12% – – 2% 13% 2% 8% –
Yahoo! News/YouGov May 4–5, 2020 1224 (RV) 11% 5% – – 6% – – 17% 18% – – – 34% 8% – –
Vox May 1, 2020 605 (V) 7% – – – 3% – – 15% 9% – – – 42% 4% – 20%
CBS/YouGov Apr 28–May 1, 2020 1671 (LV) 14% 1% – – 2% 3% 3% 19% 13% 1% – 4% 36% 3% 1% –
Economist/YouGov Apr 26–28, 2020 1222 (RV) 8% 2% – – – – – 9% 7% – – – 15% 2% 13% 44%
Harvard/Harris Apr 14–16, 2020 2394 (RV) – – – – – – – 10% 10% 1% – – 13% 3% 63% –

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