There’s a clear case for NC Gov. Roy Cooper to be on the 2024 presidential ticket | Opinion

Now that President Joe Biden has left the 2024 presidential ticket, there’s a chance that North Carolina Gov. Roy Cooper could join it.

The Democratic presidential nominee will likely be Vice President Kamala Harris, who has Biden’s endorsement. That scenario could bring Cooper into play as Harris’ running mate.

The logic of choosing Cooper is plain. An experienced white, male southern governor would provide balance. Cooper might also tip North Carolina and its 16 Electoral College votes into the Democratic column, a victory that would sharply narrow Trump’s path back to the presidency.

Cooper, 67, has been loyal to Biden. That continued Sunday after Biden exited the race. “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 in a statement Sunday afternoon. Cooper went on to endorse Harris.

Appearing on the news talk show “Morning Joe” on Monday, Cooper waved off questions about his prospects for joining the ticket. “I appreciate people talking about me,” he said, “but I think the focus right now needs to be on (Harris) this week.” He added, “The vice presidential conversation needs to occur later.”

The logic behind Cooper as a potential vice presidential candidate is clear. He has won statewide elections six times (four as attorney general and twice as governor) in a state that went for the Republican presidential candidate in the last three elections.

Although known for his reserved manner, Cooper is a strong campaigner. He has drawn on his Nash County roots to attract enough rural votes to win in years that have favored Republicans. More rural appeal is something that the Democratic ticket will sorely need.

Cooper has strongly supported public schools, which remain a popular issue despite Republican attempts to expand vouchers for private schools.

Cooper’s own ambitions could complicate the issue. Term-limited from seeking reelection, he is said to be eyeing a run for U.S. Senate in 2026 and is named on media lists as a potential presidential candidate in 2028. Joining an emergency ticket this year would complicate those options.

Gary Pearce, a longtime adviser to former Democratic Gov. Jim Hunt who now blogs about politics, said Cooper has much to recommend him for national office. Pearce said, “He’s the most popular political figure in North Carolina today. He just has a personality that inspires confidence.”

Cooper is a strong ally of both Biden and Harris, whom he has known since both served as attorneys general. As a former chair of the Democratic Governors Association, Cooper has a clear sense of the national political landscape.

Pope “Mac” McCorkle, a Democratic consultant and now a professor of the practice at the Sanford School of Public Policy, said he thinks it’s unlikely that Cooper enters the vice presidential picture.

Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro is also being floated as a possible running mate on a Harris ticket. Given the tightness of the race, McCorkle said, Democrats would be likely to use the ticket’s second slot to shore up support in the crucial blue state of Pennsylvania instead of an uncertain North Carolina.

Marc Hetherington, a UNC-Chapel Hill political scientist who researches political polarization, said Cooper is the kind of moderate politician who could unite groups behind a new Democratic ticket.

“He is a rare talent, somebody who seems to appeal quite well to the less progressive constituencies while at the same time not bothering the progressives because he’s not liberal enough,” Heatherington said. “Not many political figures are able to do that. It’s a hard balance to strike.”

Cooper has a talent for winning, but it’s more from calculation than inspiration. He has taken a more aggressive and progressive approach in dealing with a hostile, Republican-controlled state legislature, but even his admirers consider the cautious governor charisma-challenged.

But Heatherington said that, too, can be an asset. In a turbulent political environment, he said, perhaps we all “could use a little bit of bland right now.”

Associate opinion editor Ned Barnett can be reached at 919-404-7583, or nbarnett@ newsobserver.com