Biden: ‘More than one African American woman’ being considered for VP

Former Vice President Joe Biden said Friday that more than one African American woman is being considered to be his running mate.

Biden shared the detail during an interview on MSNBC as host Craig Melvin pressed him about renewed speculation about who might be his No. 2 on the Democratic ticket.

Melvin questioned whether demonstrations in Minneapolis and other cities across the country protesting police-involved deaths of unarmed black people were influencing Biden’s decision.

“I have already said I’m going to pick a Supreme Court justice who is a woman of color. I have already said my Cabinet will be full of people of — women of color, men and women of color. And I also already said that there are women of color under consideration,” Biden said in the interview.

“That is not the only criteria to determine who will be the vice president of the United States of America that I’ll choose as a running mate. It is just beginning, the process. I guarantee you, there are more — there’s more than one — there’s more than one African American woman being considered for vice president,” he added. “I promise you that.”

Biden has already vowed to select a woman as his vice president, but some Democrats are urging him to pick a black woman in recognition of the key role African American support has played in boosting his campaign.

His pick for a running mate was thrust further into the spotlight after George Floyd, an unarmed 46-year-old black man, died during a police arrest in Minneapolis. Biden is also playing defense over his off-hand remark last week that African Americans “ain’t black” if they vote for President Trump.

“I think this definitely makes him think twice and a third time about it,” one longtime Biden ally close to the campaign told The Hill. “He’s definitely going to get increased pressure from the black community. You’re already seeing that with new hires.”

Among those floated as possible running mates are Sen. Kamala Harris (D-Calif.), former Georgia gubernatorial candidate Stacey Abrams and Rep. Val Demings (D-Fla.), all of whom are black, though Biden is also known to be considering a broad swath of women. 

Biden has already said he would nominate a woman of color to the Supreme Court should a vacancy arise during his administration.