Former President Joe Biden is said to be considering Democratic Michigan Governor Gretchen Whitmer as a potential running mate, though it appears that “it had to be Kamala Harris.” Back in the summer of 2020, Whitmer was evaluated for the role, and while she showed interest, Biden ultimately chose a different path, according to a report from The Atlantic. A former senior staff member for Whitmer indicated that the situation called for a “black vice presidential candidate.”
“But I think he wanted it to be Whitmer,” the staff member noted.
An ex-adviser to both Biden and Harris commented that this perspective holds some significance. During the 2020 campaign, riots sparked across the U.S. following George Floyd’s death. Around the same time, Whitmer was under fire for her stringent measures in response to the coronavirus pandemic. In late 2021, she had to apologize after being seen dining indoors with a group of people, which contradicted her own guidelines.
Jill Biden, the former first lady, also expressed surprise about Harris’s criticisms of Biden during the campaign. She remarked that there are “millions of people in the United States. Why should we elect the person who attacked Joe?” This sentiment is echoed in her 2022 book about the president.
As reported by The Atlantic, after Biden announced his exit from the 2024 race, some Democrats were quietly hoping that Whitmer would step up to take his place. Whitmer herself stated, “I wanted to keep track of the beat and understand what was going on on the ground,” adding that she does not intend to run for president in 2024.
“It had to be [Harris]… Whitmer remarked that the delay in Biden’s decision led to that situation. Biden officially withdrew from the presidential race in July 2024, while he was in quarantine due to a positive COVID-19 test.
Shortly after announcing his withdrawal, Biden endorsed Harris. In her recent book discussing the 2024 campaign, she mentioned that she was encouraged to support him right after his announcement. Harris noted, “If you want to put me in the strongest position, you must support me now,” recognizing that Biden planned to endorse her the next day.
Back in 2020, when criticized for her measures, Whitmer told Axios that she wouldn’t apologize for her actions, considering protests against the state’s lockdown policies as “undermining” the response. In May of that year, she also faced criticism involving her husband allegedly ignoring restrictions.
