Gov. Roy Cooper of North Carolina, who has been seen as a leading contender to become Vice President Kamala Harris’ running mate, has informed her team that he has withdrawn from the vice-presidential sweepstakes, according to two people briefed on the matter.

Cooper, who previously served as chair of the Democratic Governors Association, was believed to be among the half-dozen top candidates to join Harris on the Democratic ticket.

Not Immediately Clear Why the Withdrawal

It was not immediately clear why he had taken himself out of consideration. A spokesperson for the Harris campaign declined to comment, as did a spokesperson for Cooper.

Cooper has known Harris dating to their overlapping days as state attorneys general and also campaigned recently with her. He has twice won governor’s races in North Carolina, a battleground state, even as Donald Trump carried the state at the presidential level. Cooper is prohibited from seeking a third term.

Related Story: Harris Looks to Maintain Momentum as ‘Honeymoon Phase’ Winds Down

Cooper, 67, is older than Harris, 59, but still a decade younger than Trump.

Harris is seeking to select a running mate on a highly compressed timeline, aiming to make her choice by Aug. 7 — a little more than two weeks after she entered the race to replace President Joe Biden on the Democratic ticket.

Shapiro, Walz, Beshear, Kelly, and Buttigieg in Running

Besides Cooper, those known to be under serious consideration include Gov. Josh Shapiro of Pennsylvania, Gov. Tim Walz of Minnesota, Gov. Andy Beshear of Kentucky, Sen. Mark Kelly of Arizona and Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg.

Two people with knowledge of the process said the list had been narrowed to five, though the Harris campaign has vetted a dozen potential running mates. They spoke on the condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to discuss the private deliberations.

Related Story: The Kamala Harris Report Card

The only other vice-presidential contender known to have withdrawn from the process is Adm. William H. McRaven, the former commander of U.S. Special Operations Command, who publicly took himself out of consideration last week. Before the vetting process began, Gov. Gretchen Whitmer of Michigan said she did not want to be on the national ticket and would serve the remainder of her term, which ends after the 2026 elections.

Harris’ vetting process began last week and is expected to run through this weekend. She has yet to meet in person with any of the potential running mates. The initial candidate interviews with members of her campaign staff have begun over video calls.

Several of those contenders have been campaigning publicly — and thus auditioning — for Harris in recent days. Buttigieg appeared on Fox News over the weekend and is set to appear on “The Daily Show” with Jon Stewart on Monday night. Walz has been a regular on CNN, MSNBC and Fox News — and even had a profile in the magazine Runner’s World. Beshear campaigned in Georgia.

Related Story: Watch: Kamala Harris May Bring Out Trump’s Harshest Instincts

And Shapiro campaigned in his home state over the weekend and again Monday with Whitmer.

–

This article originally appeared in The New York Times.

By Shane Goldmacher and Reid J. Epstein/Erin Schaff
c.2024 The New York Times Company