Joe Biden Says He Will Pick A Woman As His Running Mate
Joe Biden has committed to picking a woman as his running mate, saying during Sunday’s Democratic primary debate that he will field a diverse cabinet that reflects the makeup of the United States.
The former vice president faced his first one-on-one debate of the primary, meeting Vermont Senator Bernie Sanders in Arizona. The debate was held without audience members due to restrictions from the coronavirus outbreak. As Axios reported, Biden committed during the debate to selecting a woman to run alongside him should he win the party’s nomination.
“If I’m elected president, my Cabinet, my administration will look like the country,” Biden said. “And I commit that I will in fact pick a woman to be vice president. There are a number of women who are qualified to be the president of tomorrow. I would pick a woman to be my vice president.”
Sanders stated he would also likely select a woman, saying his pick would need to share his progressive values.
Biden has seized control of the Democratic primary after a string of major victories on Super Tuesday and more wins in last Tuesday’s contests. Experts believe he has a chance to wrap up the nomination early this week with another set of favorable primaries on Tuesday, including the delegate-rich state of Florida, where he leads Sanders by a wide margin.
This is not the first time that Biden has hinted about picking a woman for his running mate should he face Donald Trump in November. Late last year, Biden gave a list of women that he is considering selecting during a town hall event. Though Biden did not identify the potential candidates by name, he mentioned that one is “former attorney general who got fired,” referring to Sally Yates. She was one of the first major departures of Trump’s presidency, being fired after she instructed the Justice Department not to defend Trump’s immigration ban.
As The Hill reported, the others suggested by Biden included New Hampshire Democrats Jeanne Shaheen and Maggie Hassan, as well as Georgia gubernatorial candidate Stacey Abrams, who has gone on to lead voting rights efforts after her narrow loss there. Many pundits have pegged Abrams as a potentially strong choice given that Georgia could be in play for Democrats this year against Trump.
Biden has also committed to picking a black woman to serve on the Supreme Court, which would be the first in history.
