Meet the Women Hillary Clinton Could Pick to Be Her Running Mate
Image by GiphyAlthough many outlets have focused on male VP candidates like Julian Castro, Tom Perez, and Tim Kaine, could there be special power in an all-female ticket come fall? Jess McIntosh, a spokesperson at the pro-women, pro-choice Political Action Committee (PAC) Emily’s List told WomensHealthMag.com that the U.S’s female politicians are more than ready for the challenge.
RELATED: 7 Reasons to Want a Woman as Your President
“2016 is already shaping up to be historic when it comes to women in politics—never before have we elected a woman as the nominee of a major party and we have the chance to elect a record number of women to the Senate,” says McIntosh. “And when up against Donald Trump and a Republican Party that marginalizes and demeans women at every turn, there’s nobody better to fight back against that than Hillary Clinton and Democratic women running for office across the country.”
While representatives at Emily’s List said they couldn’t offer any more insight into potential candidates for Clinton, here are just a few of the powerful, political women who could be considered for the role:
Senator Elizabeth Warren
Photograph by Alex Wong/Getty
Warren, 66, has become something of a political darling of the left in recent years for her straight-talking, straight-shooting approach to the economy and intersecting social issues, and her admirable skill for eviscerating haters on social media. Beloved by nearly every Bernie bro, she’s the kind of candidate that captures the revolutionary, exciting energy that could certainly appeal to the Sanders supporters that remain chilly on Clinton as their nominee. Plus, she’s already made herself a prominent critic of Trump’s campaign. So it only makes sense that Clinton ally Gov. Jim Hodges of South Carolina suggested Warren’s name to The New York Times.
However, the Massachusetts senator and former Harvard professor has been vocally rejecting the groups asking her to run for president for years now. Years. True to form, she spelled it out on NBC’s Today with little fanfare: “I’m not running and I’m not going to run. I’m in Washington. I’ve got this really great job and a chance to make a difference on things that really matter.”
RELATED: Badass Senator Elizabeth Warren Went After Donald Trump in an Epic Twitter Rant
So, despite her name being the most frequently dropped at the moment, a Clinton/Warren ticket is a long shot. Ultimately, it boils down to Warren insisting that she can do more good and accomplish more in the Senate—and straight-up not having those White House aspirations at this time.
Senator Amy Klobuchar
Photograph by Bill Clark/Getty
Another woman suggested by Gov. Hodges was the nine-year senator from Minnesota. Klobuchar has been a supporter of Clinton throughout her campaign. According to Politico, she made early donations back in 2014, and was campaigning in Syracuse leading up the New York primary to promote Clinton’s infrastructure plan.
Klobuchar was the first woman elected to the U.S. Senate from her state, and her name had been floated earlier last year as a potential presidential nominee, and later this year as a potential Supreme Court appointment. She’s been an incredibly vocal member of the Senate’s Judiciary Committee, regularly urging members of the Senate to “do its job” and vote on President Obama’s appointment, according to NPR.
RELATED: WHY WOMEN’S HEALTH IS TALKING ABOUT POLITICS
A drawback to Klobuchar, according to the Times, is that, along with her lack of national name recognition, she comes from a state that’s pretty much guaranteed to go to Clinton come November, which unfortunately wouldn’t do much for a swing state strategy.
Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand
Photograph by Astrid Riecken/Getty
New York’s Kirsten Gillibrand, 46, who took over Clinton’s Senate seat via appointment back in 2009, has proved herself as a woman to watch in the Democratic party. She’s a huge supporter of women in politics, particularly with her PAC, Off The Sidelines, which encourages women and girls to be vocal about politics while raising funds for female candidates. Though she’s considered more of a moderate—earning an A-rating with the National Rifle Association (NRA) early on in her career (though they totally flunked her later)—Gillibrand’s work for paid leave, and victims and survivors of sexual assault has given her more credibility on the left in recent years.
The real problem with this choice? The constitution.
RELATED: Why Every Woman Who Gives Birth Deserves Paid Leave
While there is no rule stating that the vice president and president can’t be from the same state, it’s one of the most constitutionally inconvenient situations out there because of a protection in the 12th amendment to the constitution (meant to temper the power of big states) that requires voters to vote for at least one candidate outside their state.
As Politifact wrote, referring to a hypothetical all-Florida Jeb Bush/Marco Rubio ticket: “Electoral College voters, called electors, could not cast both of their votes for two people from their home state. In plainspeak, an Electoral College member from Maryland couldn’t cast his two votes for candidates from Maryland. Electors from any other state could still vote for two Maryland representatives, just not the electors from Maryland.”
RELATED: Why the Founder of EMILY’s List Thinks America Needs a Woman President
A very similar problem occurred, according to Politifact, with Texas residents George W. Bush and Dick Cheney back in 2000. But, it was averted when Cheney registered to vote in Wyoming instead of Texas. However, the risk of this kind of complicated constitutional mess doesn’t seem like one Clinton would be willing to take on.
Former Secretary of Homeland Security Janet Napolitano
Photograph by Astrid Riecken/Getty
With a few more credentials than some of the other candidates name-dropped so far, the former governor of Arizona, former U.S. Secretary of Homeland Security under the Obama administration, and sitting president of the University of California system has been floated by The Boston Globe as a veep contender to watch. Napolitano, 58, certainly has a swoon-worthy resumé—particularly for voters concerned about foreign policy and higher education affordability. She also would gel well with Clinton’s strategy of campaigning on her experiences working with the Obama administration.
Also, per the Globe, it certainly doesn’t hurt that Napolitano sits in the strategic swing state sweet spot that Klobuchar was lacking. She has the potential to bring over some Arizona voters disillusioned by Trump’s extreme anti-Hispanic rhetoric.
Senator Jeanne Shaheen
Photograph by Bill Clark/Getty
Shaheen, 69, is another seasoned politician (a sitting senator and former governor, the first woman to serve as both in her home state of New Hampshire) who checks off a solid number of boxes on most progressive ladies’ wishlists: She’s a major supporter of Planned Parenthood and, according to SFGate, has also been vocal about the various intersectional issues in women’s healthcare. She’s also earned the ire of the NRA for votes in favor of gun control and, most recently, sponsored legislation to address the opioid and heroin crisis affecting the U.S.
A longtime supporter and self-described friend of Clinton, Shaheen publicly endorsed the Democratic frontrunner in September 2015 with the statement: “I’m a woman for Hillary. She is tested. She is our champion and she is our friend.”
RELATED: HOT MESS 2016: TRUMP, POLITICAL CORRECTNESS, AND THE QUESTIONS WE’RE NOT ASKING
While she was considered “a long shot” for Gore’s VP back in 2000, Shaheen’s record as a pro-choice leader and her position in a swing state like New Hampshire certainly improves her odds for 2016.