DES MOINES, Iowa -- A local political scientist says the addition of California Senator Kamala Harris as former Vice President Joe Biden's running mate is likely to be good for Democratic presidential ticket.
"You have a candidate who has been vetted, she's won elections in the most populous and diverse state in the country. These, of course, are pluses for him" says Drake University Political Science professor Dennis Goldford.
He says anything in Harris' past that could be harmful to the Biden ticket would have come out while she was a candidate for president.
Goldford says Harris will have the challenge of working to bring in younger people who aren't excited about Biden as the Democratic nominee and may be less likely to vote.
"With this kind of diverse ticket representing an America that becoming more diverse, can you get those particular constituent groups to show up for a general election" he says.
Goldford says in 2020, vice presidential nominees are no longer picked because they can bring votes in specific part of the country.
He says the last time that happened successfully was in 1960 when Lyndon Johnson, from Texas, ran with John F. Kennedy who was from Massachusetts.