Republicans blast newly floated Harris vice presidential contender

Though Gov. Gretchen Whitmer (D-MI) has excused herself as a contender for the Democratic vice presidential pick, Sen. Gary Peters (D-MI) is reportedly being considered as a possible running mate by the Harris campaign in an effort to appeal to labor unions. 

Michigan is a swing state with 15 electoral votes up for grabs, and the Harris campaign is looking at the best way to win it over. Approximately 564,0000 workers in Michigan belong to a labor union, accounting for 12.4% of workers. While the number of workers in organized labor in Michigan has been on the decline since the 1980s, labor unions have long been strong supporters of Democrats. Already, Harris has received the endorsement of the AFL-CIO, the nation’s largest federation of labor unions, the United Steelworkers, and the American Federation of Teachers. 

Peters was a prominent supporter of the United Automobile Workers strike against the big three auto workers last fall. Currently, the UAW has withheld its endorsement to Harris, but Peters being picked as the running mate could encourage the auto labor union, according to Axios.

“I know for sure that one of the reasons his name is in the mix is that labor really wants to have somebody who is undoubtedly pro union, and Gary fits that definition quite well,” Rep. Dan Kildee (D-MI) told the outlet. The outlet also reported the senator is interested in the nomination, according to a Michigan Democratic party official.

As the chairman of the Democratic Senate Campaign Committee, Peters has been applauded by Democrats for helping the party retain its Senate majority back in 2022, but now the National Republican Senatorial Committee sees Peters moving for the White House as his jumping ship. 

“Gary Peters knows Democrats are about to lose the Senate majority, so now he’s trying to quit on his members and become Kamala Harris’s vice president,” NRSC Spokesman Philip Letsou told the Washington Examiner. “Kamala Harris is the most far-left presidential nominee in American history and is already absolutely toxic for down-ballot Democrats.”

However, in the first week of Harris’s campaign, the vice president raised $200 million, with two-thirds of donations coming from new donors.

The DSCC raised a million dollars two days in a row last week, and Peters said the number of volunteers in Michigan doubled in the four days since Harris announced her run for president.