WASHINGTON — Presumptive Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden said Tuesday that he will announce his running mate during the first week of August.
However, during a press conference on Tuesday, he was quiet about the final stretch of his search for a candidate.
The former vice president said recently that he has been getting extensive briefings from lawyers vetting candidates to be his vice president and plans to have “personal discussions” with his final choices for a running mate. Earlier this year, Biden pledged to choose a woman as his running mate and said his pick will be revealed before the Democratic National Convention, which begins Aug. 17.
Biden has been under some pressure to choose a Black woman as his vice presidential candidate in a nod to the constituency's role as the most dependable Democratic base of voters. He would not commit last Monday to selecting a Black woman when asked on MSNBC, saying only, "I am not committed to naming any but the people I have named, and among them there are four Black women. So, that decision is underway right now.”
Among the Black women Biden is believed to be considering are California Sen. Kamala Harris, Atlanta Mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms, Florida Rep. Val Demings, California Rep. Karen Bass and former Obama administration official Susan Rice.
But he did make one pledge.
“My administration, I promise you, will look like America," Biden said on MSNBC. "From vice president, to the Supreme Court, to Cabinet positions, to every major position in the White House: It’s going to look like America.”
He has previously vowed that, if elected and given a vacancy, he would choose a Black woman as a nominee to the Supreme Court.
