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Now that President Joe Biden has ended his reelection campaign and endorsed Vice President Kamala Harris as his successor on the ballot, the massive question mark is who her running mate will be. One name has been steadily climbing to the top of the shortlist: Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro.
Born in Abington, he began building a national profile as the state’s attorney general, taking on the powerful position in 2016, just after former President Donald Trump was elected to his first term. As attorney general, he played a major role in defending the state against Trump’s false accusations of election fraud in 2020
Now, the 51-year-old — the only governor to lead a state with a divided legislature — could have a chance to face the Trump campaign again if he is elected vice president alongside Harris.
Shapiro endorsed Harris in statement published on X Sunday evening, hours after President Joe Biden endorsed his vice president. “The best path forward for the Democratic Party is to quickly unite behind VP Harris and refocus on winning the presidency,” Shapiro wrote. Shapiro spoke with Harris and Biden on Sunday afternoon after Biden withdrew his name from the presidential race.
The governor also noted he and Harris’ shared past as prosecutors and that “we both fought for the rule of law, we both fought for people, and we got results.”
But Shapiro’s appeal goes beyond his own identity and has much to do with the weight of his state’s electoral votes.
“The battleground map has expanded a little bit in the last few weeks, but it starts and ends with Pennsylvania,” Biden fundraiser Alan Kessler said Sunday.
Here’s what you need to know about Shapiro and what would happen at the governor’s mansion if Harris decided to make him her potential vice presidential running mate.
Who is Josh Shapiro?
Shapiro made a name for himself as a moderate Democrat who enjoys bipartisan support, starting by serving in the Pennsylvania House of Representatives from 2005 to 2011. Shapiro has served on several key committees, including the Judiciary and Appropriations Committees.
Shapiro went on to serve as a Montgomery County commissioner before being elected state attorney general, where he first came into the national spotlight by defending Pennsylvania against false allegations of voter fraud in the 2020 election. Shapiro has often appeared on TV news programs to present the state’s case and prevent Republican lawmakers from subpoenaing documents tied for the elections.
His portfolio as attorney general gave Shapiro a launching pad for the state’s governorship. He cleared the field of all other Democratic candidates in the primary and won the general election by 14 points (Though his opponent, State Senator Doug Mastriano, was a delicate candidate known for his extreme views.)
As governor, he gained credibility for his handling of crises, including the partial collapse of a section of I-95 and the release of toxic chemicals into Pennsylvania following a train derailment in East Palestine, Ohio.
His leadership became evident most recently in the wake of the assassination attempt on Trump in Butler County, Pennsylvania.
Even Republican Dave McCormick, who is running against incumbent Sen. Bob Casey (D., Pa.) in November, expressed his appreciation for Shapiro on X.
“Thankful for [Josh Shapiro] for his strength and leadership following the tragedy in Butler on Saturday,” McCormick wrote. This may be proof that showing support for Shapiro is not radioactive for the Republican Party.
Shapiro’s record in Pennsylvania shows his ability to walk the aisle, and he may want to bring that same thinking to the national stage. Shapiro is known to have national political ambitions.
Pennsylvania’s most popular governor could become first Jewish vice president in first term
If Shapiro is chosen as Harris’ vice presidential candidate, Shapiro, who grew up in a Jewish day school and found many ways to profess his faith during the election campaignhas a chance to make history and become the first Jewish vice president.
Shapiro, only the third Jewish governor of Pennsylvania, has taken a strong stance against anti-Semitism on college campuses and has been outspoken in his support for Israel on the national stage.
His support for Israel is another value he shares with many Republicans. Shapiro has been the most popular first-term governor in a key battleground state for more than 20 years, according to recent polls that also underscore his appeal to GOP voters.
What could a vice presidential nomination mean for the Pennsylvania government?
In Pennsylvania, Lieutenant Governor Austin Davis would be first in line to fill the gubernatorial vacancies created by resignations, according to Ballotpediaamerican political encyclopedia. The president pro tempore of the state Senate, in this case Rep. Kim Ward (R, Westmoreland), would then become lieutenant governor if she wins the November election.
Davis, 34, is the youngest and first black lieutenant governor in Pennsylvania’s historyHe became involved in community organizing when gun violence rocked his town of McKeesport, a former steel town in western Pennsylvania, and, with its mayor, founded a youth advisory council and a school-based youth gun violence prevention program.
As lieutenant governor, Davis presides over the State Senate and directs the Pennsylvania Board of Pardons, the Local Government Advisory Committee, and the Pennsylvania Commission on Crime and Delinquency. He also serves on the Pennsylvania Emergency Management Council.
In early 2023, Ward briefly served as lieutenant governor until Davis officially took office on January 17, 2023. She is the first woman to hold the office of president pro tempore, the third most powerful position in state government.
Initially appointed to the position on an interim basis, Ward has expressed a willingness to work with Shapiro and other Democrats to get things done and craft legislation that works for their constituents. The leaders would simply have to “stay within … the boundaries of both parties’ ideologies,” she told The Inquirer in December 2022.
Co-author Gillian McGoldrick contributed to this article.