Four black women part of running mate search

Joe Biden’s search for a running mate has advanced to the next phase as his campaign conducts more exten- sive reviews of some pros- pects, including several African American women, according to people with knowledge of the situation.

Among the candidates who have progressed to the point of more comprehensive vetting or have the potential to do so are Sen. Kamala Harris, D-Calif., Rep. Val Demings, D-Fla., former national secu- rity adviser Susan Rice and Atlanta Mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms, all of whom are black. Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., who is white, is also in that group, as is New Mexico Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham, who is Latina.

The pool of prospects remains fluid, and some close Biden allies suggested other contenders could also face the more intensive vetting. The people describing the situation spoke on the con- dition of anonymity to discuss sensitive private conversations and an evolving process. The Biden campaign declined to comment. Biden has vowed to choose a woman.

The candidates who con- tinue to be under consider- ation by the campaign reflect in part the growing prom- inence of African American women amid a national uproar over police violence and racism that has sparked protests around the country.

These developments have added pressure on Biden to select a black woman as his ticket mate. “I think that a ticket that is not reflective of the diversity of this country is a ticket that is doomed to fail,” said Rep. Marcia Fudge, D-Ohio, who said she has long felt Biden should pick a black woman and feels “even more so now.”

Biden’s search is attracting even more attention than that of most candidates because at 77, he would be the oldest person ever elected to the presidency. Beyond potential health issues, some Democrats believe that if elected, Biden might not seek a second term, giving his vice president an early advantage in the race to become the next chief executive.