Former Vice President Joe Biden has selected one-time Democratic rival U.S. Sen. Kamala Harris, of California, as his running mate.
That news was made official with a tweet from Biden at 4:17 p.m., followed by an update of his campaign website this afternoon. The update shows the two together under a graphic reading “Biden Harris.”
In his announcement, Biden called Harris, “a fearless fighter for the little guy, and one of the country’s finest public servants.”
Harris, 55, is in her first term as a U.S. senator. Prior to that, she served as district attorney in San Francisco and as California’s attorney general.
Harris, who is biracial, becomes the first Black woman to be nominated for vice president by a major political party.
With the selection of Harris, Biden has cemented a centrist Democratic ticket, avoiding a more progressive selection such as U.S. Sen. Elizabeth Warren, who was also widely considered to be on the vice presidential shortlist.
