Gov. Shapiro To Campaign For Kamala Harris In PA This Weekend

CARLISLE, PA — Gov. Josh Shapiro and Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer will campaign for Kamala Harris in Pennsylvania this weekend amid swirling rumors that Shapiro is a leading favorite to land the vice presidential slot on the blue ticket.

The event will take place in Carlisle Saturday, days before former President Donald Trump rallies just miles away in Harrisburg next Wednesday. It will be Trump's first return to the Keystone State since the assassination attempt in Butler on July 13.

The appearances of numerous national figures bring renewed focus to Pennsylvania as a critical battleground state that could once again determine the outcome of the 2024 election. Shapiro's overwhelming success in the Keystone State in 2022 against Doug Mastriano, who ran on a MAGA agenda, is a leading reason analysts have tabbed him as a front runner.

Related: Gov. Shapiro Among Front Runners For Vice President

Shapiro has hit the campaign trail hard for Harris since last Sunday, when Biden announced he would not run for a second term. He even earned a unique endorsement for the job from Philadelphia Mayor Cherelle Parker Friday at a Philadelphia Building Trades Council rally.

"If they take our advice, Josh Shapiro will be our vice president," Parker said to a cheering union crowd.

Shapiro spoke after Parker, and while he didn't directly address the VP rumors, he spent time excoriating Trump while hyping Harris.

"Donald Trump is now afraid of debating Kamala Harris — and not just because he knows she’s a skilled debater," he said. "He's scared because he can’t run away from his record any longer — but here in Pennsylvania, we haven’t forgotten who he is and we aren’t going back."

The Harris campaign told Patch that 8,000 volunteers had registered in Pennsylvania for the Harris campaign since she became the presumptive nominee, calling it an "an unprecedented level of engagement."

Shapiro said he spoke with both Biden and Harris last Sunday before immediately endorsing Harris, and the ensuing several days saw him rise to the top of a Democratic shortlist that had been shorn of larger names like Whitmer, Maryland Gov. Wes Moore, and California Gov. Gavin Newsom.

Potential VP choices are notoriously close-lipped about the possibility of their selection, though Shapiro's demurring has been more subtle. During a public appearance this week at Shippensburg University, Shapiro said that "I was not asked, and I have not submitted paperwork."

Harris has slightly narrowed the polling lead Trump held nationally over Biden, from 3 points to 1.9 points, according to the latest aggregate of polls from RealClearPolitics. Trump still maintains a 3.6 point lead over Harris in Pennsylvania.