Atlanta Mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms is reportedly being vetted as Biden's running mate


Rumors began swirling that Atlanta Mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms could emerge as a possible running mate for former Vice President Joe Biden after she gave a well-received speech late last month during protests against police brutality in her city. As it turns out, those rumors are true, Politico reports.
Two sources with knowledge of the discussions confirmed the Biden campaign is vetting Bottoms to potentially be the Democratic presidential nominee's vice president. Bottoms deferred questions about the process to the campaign, and said she remains focused on her mayoral role, the protests, and the coronavirus pandemic. But she has previously acknowledged she was honored to have her name mentioned.
Bottoms is known for sticking by Biden through thick and thin. She was the first big city mayor to endorse him and has served as a campaign trail surrogate for over a year, refusing to budge even when it looked like his campaign was on the edge of collapse.
The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
Politico also reports the Biden campaign has begun to focus more heavily on selecting a black woman as vice president, especially in light of the nationwide demonstrations responding to racial injustice. Other candidates for vice president besides Bottoms include Sen. Kamala Harris (D-Calif.), Rep. Val Demings (D-Fla.), former Georgia Democratic state House Leader Stacey Abrams, and former National Security Adviser Susan Rice.
"These are extraordinary times, Joe is an extraordinary candidate," said former Sen. Carol Moseley Braun, the first black woman to serve in the Senate. "The only way he's going to get the voters energized is to have a black woman candidate — a black woman — for vice president." Read more at Politico.
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Tim is a staff writer at The Week and has contributed to Bedford and Bowery and The New York Transatlantic. He is a graduate of Occidental College and NYU's journalism school. Tim enjoys writing about baseball, Europe, and extinct megafauna. He lives in New York City.
-
October 13 editorial cartoons
Cartoons Monday's political cartoons include Donald Trump's consolation prize, government workers during shutdown, and more
-
Can Gaza momentum help end the war in Ukraine?
Today's Big Question Zelenskyy’s request for long-range Tomahawk missiles hints at ‘warming relations’ between Ukraine and US
-
The Israeli hostages and Palestinian prisoners being released
The Explainer Triumphant Donald Trump addresses the Israeli parliament as families on both sides of the Gaza war reunite with their loved ones
-
Trump DOJ indicts New York AG Letitia James
Speed Read New York Attorney General Letitia James was indicted as Trump’s Justice Department pursues charges against his political opponents
-
Judge blocks Trump’s Guard deployment in Chicago
Speed Read The president is temporarily blocked from federalizing the Illinois National Guard or deploying any Guard units in the state
-
Trump urges jail for Illinois, Chicago leaders
Speed Read The Texas National Guard begin operations in the Chicago area
-
Bondi stonewalls on Epstein, Comey in Senate face-off
Speed Read Attorney General Pam Bondi denied charges of using the Justice Department in service of Trump’s personal vendettas
-
Court allows Trump’s Texas troops to head to Chicago
Speed Read Trump is ‘using our service members as pawns in his illegal effort to militarize our nation’s cities,’ said Gov. J.B. Pritzker
-
Judge bars Trump’s National Guard moves in Oregon
Speed Read In an emergency hearing, a federal judge blocked President Donald Trump from sending National Guard troops into Portland
-
Museum head ousted after Trump sword gift denial
Speed Read Todd Arrington, who led the Dwight D. Eisenhower Presidential Library and Museum, denied the Trump administration a sword from the collection as a gift for King Charles
-
Trump declares ‘armed conflict’ with drug cartels
speed read This provides a legal justification for recent lethal military strikes on three alleged drug trafficking boats