Whenever the presumptive Democratic nominee for President, Joe Biden, holds events or goes on television, he is always asked about his running mate selection process and shortlist. 

Biden has committed to picking a female vice president since the last Demoratic primary debate in March. 

Ever since, many have called on the former vice president to pick a woman of color, specifically African-American.

In an MSNBC interview last week Joy Reid asked Biden if he was going to commit to picking an Black female running mate because of how loyal Black women have been to Democratic party and how they helped him secure his first presidential primary victory in South Carolina. 

“I am not committed to naming any but the people I’ve named and among them there are four Black women. So that decision is under way right now,” the former vice president answered. 

The “four Black women” he mentioned are rumored to be former national security advisor Susan Rice, Senator Kamala Harris and congresswomen Val Demings and Karen Bass.  

Biden and his campaign have repeatedly stated the running mate will be announced in the first week of August.  

A photo of Biden’s notes taken at a campaign event he was holding in Wilmington, Del. to detail his “Build Back Better” plan may have signaled to voters who his pick is going to be. 

The photo taken by Andrew Harnik of the Associated Press clearly shows the name of Kamala Harris at the top of Biden’s notes with several bullet points underneath. 

Harris has been a leading contender to be vice president for months and is a popular figure in Democratic politics.

Her 2020 presidential campaign started off with her as a top polling candidate, especially after a clash with Biden in their first debate appearance. 

The campaign failed to pick up steam after that and she was criticized for her criminal justice record and being overly rehearsed when on stage. 

She ended her campaign on Dec. 19, two months before the Iowa caucuses and polling fifth in her home state of California. 

The first bullet point under her name in Biden’s notes read “Do Not Hold Grudges.” 

This is in reference to when Harris attacked Biden at the first primary debate for working with segregationists and his record on race.  

The moment was one of the highlights of the primary cycle and also one of the harshest criticisms Biden received during his campaign. 

The former vice president has said that he does not hold hard feelings about the moment and he praised the Senator when she suspended her campaign. His words indicated that he at least plans to work with her in the future in his administration should he be elected.

“Sen. Harris has the capacity to be anything she wants to be. I mean it sincerely. I talked to her yesterday. She is solid. She can be president someday herself. She can be vice president. She can go on to be a Supreme Court justice. She can be an attorney general,” Biden said. 

If he selects Harris as his running mate, he will be questioned on how he could form a ticket with someone that launched such allegations against him. 

The next point said “Campaigned with me & Jill.” 

Harris held a rally with the former vice president in Michigan ahead of the state’s primary. There, he also received the endorsement of Senator Cory Booker and the state’s Governor Gretchen Whitmer, who is also on Biden’s vice president shortlist. 

Biden winning the Michigan primary proved decisive as it put him ahead of Bernie Sanders in the delegate count with a commanding lead. 

“Talented” was the next thing under the senator’s name.

Harris does have experience in multiple levels of politics. Before being sworn into the Senate in 2017, she served as San Francisco’s District Attorney and then Attorney General of California. 

Digging deeper into her resume makes it less glamorous.

Her record as district attorney includes prosecuting parents for truancy and going against her staff’s advice to do so. 

As attorney general she also did not prosecute Steve Mnuchin, current Secretary of the Treasury, when his OneWest bank had foreclosed tens of thousands of homeowners in California. It was later found out that she tried to bury the evidence. 

“Great Help to Campaign” was Biden’s penultimate point. 

Harris does share much of the former vice president’s views, which is something he is looking for in a running mate, and she is nationally-recognized but she does not offer much more to the Democratic ticket.

Kamala Harris does not bring a regional advantage as California is a safe Democratic state. 

Electing the first Black female vice president would generate some enthusiasm, but many in the Black community are divided on voting for Harris because of her prosecutorial record. 

Biden’s last point was that he has “Great Respect for Her.”

Even though he had many opportunities to get even with Harris and attack her political record, he never did. 

He has considered her to be part of his cabinet for months and she is now the leading candidate to be his running mate. 

More than mutual respect is required to be Vice President of the United States, but with Biden’s final selection only days away, voters are still left in suspense.