Independent Cornel West taps professor Melina Abdullah as presidential running mate

Independent presidential candidate Cornel West on Wednesday announced that California State University, Los Angeles professor Melina Abdullah will be his running mate.

"I wanted somebody whose heart mind and soul is committed to the empowerment of poor and working peoples of all colors," West told Tavis Smiley on Smiley's KBLA 1580 radio show.

“Melina has a history of — longevity of putting her heart, mind and soul in the struggle," West added.

Abdullah is a professor of Pan-African studies and formerly chaired the Department of Pan-African Studies at Cal State.

West is seeking ballot access in states across the country for his long-shot campaign, which has registered in the low single digits in public polling but could have a big impact on a close 2024 election between President Joe Biden and former President Donald Trump. West has been a critic of Biden's presidency from the left, and he criticized both major-party candidates in the interview Wednesday.

"Trump is leading the country toward a second Civil War, Biden is leading the world toward World War III," West said Wednesday, adding, "That’s the choice you have if you only are tied to the duopoly. ... We are providing an alternative."

“I’ve been keeping up with his campaign," Abdullah told Smiley, adding: "I’ve been really, really inspired. I mean, a platform of truth, love and justice? What kind of platform is that? How can you not get behind that platform?"

Abdullah said that she first met West when she was an undergraduate student at Howard University, and shekept in loose contact with him throughout her career as an academic.

In July 2023, she, West and Smiley connected during an event commemorating the 10th anniversary of the Black Lives Matter movement. West