Beshear for VP buzz increases as he headlines a key Harris campaign event in GA Sunday
The “Beshear for VP” buzz is intensifying this weekend.
On Sunday morning, the 46-year-old governor will be in Georgia headlining an event for Harris for President, flying in after delivering the keynote address to an annual gathering for the Iowa Democratic Party.
The Iowa event was planned well in advance. The Georgia event was announced late Friday night, part of an events blitz for the brand new presidential campaign of Vice President Kamala Harris.
It also could double as a tryout for the 46-year-old Kentucky governor. He is one of several high-profile Democrats being vetted to become Harris’ vice presidential running mate.
Georgia, unlike Kentucky, is a key swing state. Former President Joe Biden, who stepped out of the race last week, won the Peach State by around 12,000 votes in 2020.
Beshear will be speaking in Forsyth County, a thriving suburban center about 45 miles outside of Atlanta. Forsyth County is one of the fastest-growing counties in America. It also leans conservative, as former president Donald Trump garnered 66% of the vote there in 2020.
It’s clear that Beshear is being considered by the Harris camp despite not bringing any home-state electoral votes to the White House equation. Kentucky is handily controlled by Donald Trump, the GOP nominee and former president.
But insiders say Beshear is gaining favor for his economic development record and his unique appeal among voters who identify as moderate or conservative.
In a recent survey from Morning Consult, Beshear gained the highest approval marks among all Democratic governors among Republican and self-described moderate constituents.
He also has a proven track record of knocking off high-profile and well-financed Trump-endorsed opponents: first in 2019 against GOP incumbent Matt Bevin and again last November when he defeated Attorney General Daniel Cameron, who had incredibly close ties to Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, another Kentucky Republican.
Beshear will headline the Georgia event alongside prominent Kentucky abortion rights advocate Hadley Duvall, a young woman who was raped and impregnated by her stepfather and would have been unable to get an abortion if the state’s near-total ban on the procedure had been in place.
Duvall launched into the political scene by appearing in a Beshear gubernatorial reelection ad recounting her story. Later, she did the same for the Biden campaign.
In the first week of her presidential campaign, Harris has sounded alarms about Trump’s anti-choice stance on abortion. In campaign appearance and rallies, she’s trumpeted that ensuring women’s reproductive health and their access to abortion will be a major focus of her presidency.
Beshear is under consideration to run alongside Harris — a job that many political observers believe he would take if offered, though he always stresses how much he loves being governor — but he’s been mum on many of the details.
A spokesperson for his political operation did not say if an interview with Harris’ team for the role has been scheduled.
The event is part of a “Weekend of Action” blitz in Georgia where the Harris campaign is holding more than 170 events, including three office openings like the 11 a.m. one that Beshear is headlining.
This story was originally published July 27, 2024 at 12:20 PM.
