Arizona U.S. Senator Mark Kelly confirmed in a Wednesday interview he has no current plans to travel to Pennsylvania on Tuesday after the presidential campaign for Vice President Kamala Harris reportedly suggested its vice presidential candidate will be selected in Philadelphia on that date.
After the Harris campaign confirmed a tour of battleground states, which will include both Harris and her vice presidential running mate, Kelly was asked by a panel of hosts on MSNBC about the reports claiming he is on the short list possible candidates to share a ticket with Harris.
“I’m not going to get into any of that,” said Kelly. “I’m going to be focused on making sure Kamala is the next president. I’m going to work as hard as I can.”
Kelly later elaborated on his travel plans, stating that he intends to travel “across the country tirelessly” to see Harris elected, but confirmed this schedule did not include a stop in Pennsylvania on Tuesday.
“Next week, my plans, right now, are to be in Arizona,” he said.
The senator explained, “Arizona is important, not only for who is going to be in the White House, but also who is going to keep control of the United States Senate.”
Asked what qualities or experience Harris could seek in a candidate to complete the Democratic presidential ticket, Kelly again showed reluctant to answer the question.
“I bet she’s got a lot of great choices out there,” said Kelly. “My focus is not on this, and this is not about me. This is about the future of our country.”
At one point, Kelly clarified his intention to work for the betterment of Harris and other Democrats, if not his own potential candidacy as vice president.
“I’m going to work as hard as I can between now and Election Day,” the former astronaut said.
He added, “We’ve got 97 days, we have to make sure Kamala Harris is elected the next president of the United States.”
While the senator insisted he would use his bully pulpit to aid the Harris campaign regardless of whether he is picked as vice president, his endorsement may not have been enough in Arizona’s 3rd Congressional District, where his endorsed candidate, former State Senator Raquel Terán, continues to trail climate change activist Yassamin Ansari.
Watch Kelly’s full interview:
– – –
Tom Pappert is the lead reporter for The Tennessee Star, and also reports for The Pennsylvania Daily Star and The Arizona Sun Times. Follow Tom on X/Twitter. Email tips to [email protected].
Photo “Mark Kelly” by MSNBC.
