We Could've Had An All-Woman Ticket, But Harris-Walz Is The Second-Best Option

This season’s Bachelorette: Presidential Election Edition™ has come to a close, which means Vice President Kamala Harris has passed out a single rose to one hopeful 2024 presidential running mate.

The Democratic nominee for president selected Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz as her possible future vice president on Tuesday, ending weeks of speculation and shameless self-promotion from a list of very white, very male candidates.

Though it’s a relief to watch Harris and the Democratic Party avoid their historically Democratic ways and self-sabotage by way of a more moderate (and problematic) pick (i.e., Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro), I’m pouring one out for what could have been.

Yes, I will stan Walz as Harris’ running mate — the walking, talking antidote to what many voters would expect from a white male Midwestern politician. As governor, he has protected abortion access, guaranteed free breakfast and lunch for all public school students, legalized cannabis, strengthened union protections and much more.

But Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer was right there ! And though Harris didn’t pick the obviously safe choice in Shapiro — what many will continue to argue was necessary in order to “balance” a Democratic ticket led by a biracial woman who embodies many progressive “firsts” that a portion of the country is either extremely uncomfortable with or downright despises ― the Democrats still left a far more progressive, far more hopeful ticket on the proverbial table.

Whitmer’s name came up consistently (though not seriously enough) in the VP contender conversation, and for good reason. Whitmer’s ability to forcefully articulate all that is wrong with a Republican Party beholden to a group of radical bigots and blatant misogynists