With President Biden out of the race, what could be next for NC Gov. Roy Cooper?

With President Joe Biden no longer running in the 2024 election, Vice President Kamala Harris could become the nominee — and she may be looking to North Carolina for a running mate.

Biden left the race for president on Sunday and offered his “full support and endorsement for Kamala to be the nominee of our party this year. Democrats — it’s time to come together and beat Trump. Let’s do this.”

North Carolina Democratic Gov. Roy Cooper could be considered as a vice presidential nominee, as Democrats prepare for their convention in August. His name has been repeatedly mentioned as a possibility, along with half a dozen other prominent Democrats, including former astronaut and Arizona Sen. Mark Kelly, Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro and Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear.

Finishing up his second term, Cooper has said that he wants to continue in public service, but has continuously demurred on all questions related to the presidential race, being a VP pick or running for office.

Cooper has long been expected to find his next job working somehow with Biden and Harris. For most of the year, that looked like being named as a Cabinet pick if Biden won reelection, given that Cooper’s term ends Dec. 31.

As previously reported by The N&O, Cooper’s name has appeared on several lists as a potential running mate for Harris. They are longtime friends and both served as attorneys general.

Cooper statement about Biden

Cooper issued a statement Sunday afternoon about Biden, but did not mention Harris or his own potential future.

“President Biden has cemented his place among our nation’s finest Presidents. When our democracy faced danger, President Biden stood strong as the rarest type of leader who could help us forge ahead with a vision to repair our country’s soul,” Cooper said.

He went on to praise Biden for being able to “pass transformative legislation that will benefit our economy, our families, and our country for generations to come.

“Just as impactful as the laws he passed, though, is his ability to listen to everyday people, related to their struggles, and give them hope. I’m deeply grateful to call President Joe Biden my friend, and I thank him from the bottom of my heart for his service to our great nation,” Cooper said.

The Democrats’ July

Cooper joined Biden and Harris on a meeting with Democratic governors on July 3, during fallout from Biden’s dismal debate performance with Trump on June 27. Cooper called in to that meeting, while others went to Washington, D.C., in person.

Cooper said in a statement after the meeting that he would continue to support Biden, and called former President Donald Trump a “threat to our democracy.” “We had a good meeting with the President talking about what’s needed to win. Donald Trump is an existential threat to our democracy, and everyone in the room agreed that defeating him is imperative,” Cooper said. “President Biden told us he is definitely running for reelection, he is our nominee and we’ll continue doing everything we can to deliver North Carolina for him,” Cooper added.

In the weeks that followed, the number of Democrats calling for Biden to drop out of the race increased, though Cooper continued to support a Biden-Harris ticket.

Cooper has also cheered on the Biden-Harris ticket during three campaign stops in North Carolina after that debate: first the day after the debate when Biden rallied in Raleigh, then at Harris’ visit to Greensboro on July 11 as well as Harris’ visit to Fayetteville on July 18. Cooper cautioned in his speeches about “Donald Trump’s America” and the importance of defeating Trump.

On July 20, the night before Biden stepped down, U.S. House Speaker Emerita Nancy Pelosi was the keynote speaker at the North Carolina Democratic Party’s annual unity dinner. She — and Cooper — barely mentioned Biden at all in their speeches.

Pelosi, who was among the top Democrats urging Biden to leave the race, said in Raleigh that “elections are not about rewarding you for what you have done. They are about what you are going to do next.”

Cooper’s two terms as governor

As governor, Cooper has been most known in the state for his response to the coronavirus pandemic and his relentless push for Medicaid expansion. Medicaid expansion was at the center of several state budget battles with the Republican-controlled General Assembly. During his entire time in the governor’s mansion, Republicans have controlled the legislative branch. That divided government led to more moderate governing than other states, and Cooper, Republican Senate leader Phil Berger and Republican House Speaker Tim Moore had to work together to recruit new businesses to the state, including Apple.

He won election to governor first in 2016, when he narrowly defeated incumbent Republican Gov. Pat McCrory, who faced fallout over House Bill 2, known as the bathroom bill. In 2020, Cooper defeated Republican Lt. Gov. Dan Forest in a governor’s race that was largely a referendum on his COVID-19 response.

Before becoming governor, Cooper, who is from Nash County in Eastern North Carolina, served as attorney general as well as in the state Senate and House.

Like Cooper, his wife Kristin Cooper is a lawyer by trade. They have three grown daughters.

Cooper was criticized by Republicans while he put COVID-19 restrictions in place, which included closing schools, restaurants, bars and other businesses, a mask mandate and limiting the size of gatherings over many months. He and his Cabinet pick, N.C. Department of Health and Human Services Secretary Mandy Cohen, who now leads the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, described the gradual loosening of restrictions as a “dimmer switch” approach. It led to lawsuits from those impacted by the mandates.

Criticism of Cooper has focused on those pandemic restrictions and his administration’s response to hurricane relief. He hasn’t had any personal scandals in office. His demeanor is even-keeled, and he is polite and personable, though he requires loyalty from Democrats in the legislature.

Before Republicans gained a supermajority, which means they can easily override Cooper’s vetoes, Cooper would call swing Democrats to the mansion to pressure them to support his priorities. On occasion when Democrats have voted with Republicans, Cooper has supported and funded primary opponents in the next election.

Harris rally-goers’ view of Cooper

At Harris’ rally in Fayetteville last week, Kimberly Naff told The News & Observer that if Harris is the nominee and chooses Cooper, she thinks “the two of them could bring forward something that is really amazing, and start to bring down the age of presidents in the last 10 years.”

Cooper is 67. Harris is 59.

Melissa Wicksel, also at Harris’ Fayetteville rally, said Cooper “gets stuff done and it seems like Kamala and him are eye-to-eye.”

At the state party’s unity dinner on Saturday night in Raleigh, some Democratic lawmakers declined to talk about Biden’s future. But Sunday was different.

State Sen. Jay Chaudhuri, of Raleigh, told The N&O that he “can’t think of a better a better vice presidential candidate for Kamala Harris than Roy Cooper.” He also said that it would be Cooper and his family’s decision to make if Harris picked him.

Emmy Martin and Luciana Perez Uribe Guinassi contributed to this story.