Who Is Josh Shapiro? Harris VP Speculation Builds Around Pennsylvania Governor.
Topline
Vice President Kamala Harris’ swing-state tour with her 2024 VP pick will kick off in Philadelphia next week, adding to speculation that Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro is one of her top picks for running mate—as many believe he would bolster Harris’ chances in the all-important swing state.
Shapiro has already hit the campaign trail for Harris, appearing alongside Michigan Gov. Gretchen … [+]
Key Facts
A former state representative, county commissioner and attorney general who was elected as Pennsylvania’s governor in 2022, 51-year-old Shapiro could help Harris’ chances in his home state, whose 19 electoral votes could decide the next president.
Shapiro spent a state-record $73 million to defeat GOP nominee and state Sen. Doug Mastriano in a closely-watched 2022 gubernatorial election that Shapiro ultimately won by 14 points.
Shapiro is among the nation’s most popular governors: Last week, a Morning Consult poll found 56% of Pennsylvanians approve of his job performance.
Shapiro hasn’t been in the governor’s office long, and, according to Philadelphia NPR affiliate WHYY, some of his biggest accomplishments came when he was attorney general, including an investigation of the Catholic Church’s effort to cover up a child sexual abuse scandal that sparked similar efforts in other states.
As governor, he drew national attention for spearheading a repair effort after a section of the crucial I-95 artery collapsed last summer– traffic was flowing again less than 12 days later, handing Shapiro, who held frequent press briefings about the effort, a major political victory.
A Harris-Shapiro ticket would generate a number of firsts: Harris would be the first female and Asian American president, and Shapiro would be the first Jewish vice president.
In a statement on X after Biden announced he was dropping out, Shapiro praised Harris, a fellow former attorney general who he said he has known for almost two decades.
News Peg
Shapiro has been considered a potential running mate for Harris since President Joe Biden suspended his reelection campaign, but speculation has increased in the last few days, though Harris says she hasn’t made a decision yet. Yesterday, Harris’ campaign announced she and her VP pick will begin a tour of swing states next week, beginning with a rally in Philadelphia. On Wednesday morning, Axios reported the Harris campaign was telling donors on Wall Street to give to the campaign as soon as possible to avoid contribution limits that would kick in if a governor was selected as VP. A campaign aide told Politico that people should not read too much into the location of the first event, and none of the last six announcements of VP candidates, dating back to 2008, took place in the running mate’s home state. Nevertheless, Shapiro’s odds according to the betting site Polymarket have skyrocketed–from 33% on Tuesday afternoon to 78% as of 2:30 p.m. Wednesday.
Key Background
Shapiro was raised in Dresher, Pennsylvania, outside Philadelphia, where his mother was a teacher and his father was a pediatrician. A graduate of Georgetown University’s law school and the University of Rochester, Shapiro worked on Capitol Hill for a few years before entering state politics. Shapiro was first elected to the state legislature at the age of 31, and later served as a suburban Philadelphia county commissioner and as attorney general before taking the governor’s office. He and his high-school sweetheart, Lori, have four children.
Contra
A key to Shapiro’s appeal as a VP pick is his electoral success in Pennsylvania, a crucial swing state. He was elected governor in 2022, outperforming Biden in every county in the state. A recent article in the Philadelphia Inquirer, however, downplays the importance of that victory. Shapiro ran against Mastriano, a hard-right state senator who was on the U.S. Capitol grounds during the Jan. 6 riot and reportedly served as a “point person” in Trump’s effort to overturn Biden’s win in Pennsylvania. The Inquirer described Mastriano as a “weak” and “underfunded” candidate who “hardly campaigned,” pushing back against the notion that Shapiro’s name on the ticket would necessarily deliver Pennsylvania’s electoral votes to Harris.
What Has Trump Said About Shapiro?
Campaigning alongside Mastriano in 2022, Donald Trump described Shapiro, who is generally considered to be relatively moderate, as a “far-left Democrat.” He blamed him, and his tenure as attorney general, for what he described as a state of lawlessness in Philadelphia. “He is a disaster for this state,” he said.
Chief Critics
Shapiro’s tenure has not been without scandal: In September, one of his top aides abruptly resigned, and Spotlight PA later reported that Shapiro’s office had paid $295,000 to “quietly settle” a sexual harassment complaint against the advisor. The incident drew criticism from across the state. One op-ed in the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette criticized Shapiro’s decision to keep the advisor on his staff for months after the initial report of harassment, accusing him of putting “women across his administration, and across Harrisburg, at risk.” Shapiro has also drawn criticism from the left for backing policies like school vouchers, corporate tax cuts and more police on the streets to win over moderate voters. In office, he has supported plans to cut corporate taxes and initially voiced support for a $100 million school voucher program, though he ultimately backed away from the latter. Shapiro faced some criticism in the wake of Hamas’ Oct. 7 attack and Israel’s invasion of Gaza, after he criticized some universities’ handling of pro-Palestinian protests and circulated a new policy barring state employees from “scandalous or disgraceful behavior,” seen by some as a threat to free-speech. Shapiro, who proposed to his wife in Jerusalem, has been a vocal defender of Israel and has issued warnings about antisemitism—but he is also a strong critic of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
What Was Shapiro Saying Before Biden Dropped Out?
Asked by CBS News whether he would make a good president or VP pick the day before Biden dropped out, Shapiro said he was “not going to get into hypotheticals” and expressed his support for the president. After Biden dropped out and endorsed Harris, Shapiro quickly called on the party to fall in behind her. “I will do everything I can to help elect Kamala Harris as the 47th President of the United States,” he said.
