Vice President Kamala Harris is considering making U.S. Sen. Mark Kelly (D-AZ) her running mate in the 2024 presidential election. 

The Hill reports:

Sen. Mark Kelly (D-Ariz.) has risen to near the top of the list of possible running mates as Vice President Harris considers who she wants to run alongside her.

This means that, in a very short period, we went from President Joe Biden calling off his reelection campaign, to Democratic Party leaders lining up in support of Harris, to Harris being on the verge of selecting a running mate.

Still, not everyone is convinced that Harris will be the Democratic Party's presidential nominee. Although party leaders have lined up behind her, the fact is that she has still not been formally nominated.

Here we go

This past week, the Associated Press reported that Harris's campaign had already begun to vet possible running mates.

Per the outlet:

Vice President Kamala Harris is beginning to vet about a dozen possible candidates to be her running mate, according to two people familiar with the matter, as she approaches one of the most consequential decisions of her new presidential candidacy.

The Associated Press went on to suggest some of the individuals whom Harris is vetting.

The outlet reported:

While much of the political conversation has centered on four names — Arizona Sen. Mark Kelly, Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro, Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear, and North Carolina Gov. Roy Cooper — Harris’ team has requested information from about a dozen officials, according to the people, who spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss the confidential process.

Some of the other possibilities include "Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg, Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo, Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker, Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer, and Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz."

A favorite has emerged

Now, if The Hill's reporting is accurate, it appears that Kelly is the favorite.

The Hill reports:

Democrats have expressed enthusiasm around Kelly since he first won his Senate seat in a 2020 special election to serve the remainder of late Sen. John McCain’s (R-Ariz.) term. He was then elected to a full term in the Senate in 2022. In both cases, he won by a few points and performed better than President Biden in the state in 2020 and now-Gov. Katie Hobbs (D) in 2022.

This appears to be one of the main reasons why Harris is considering him. Not only is she hoping that he can help her to win Arizona, but she is hoping that he can help her with other states as well.

Republicans have already begun to turn their attention to Kelly.

And, Kelly, for his part, has begun to return fire.