North Carolina governor says Harris ‘has a lot of great options’ for running mate

SUPPLY, N.C. (AP) — A day after confirming he wouldn’t be a candidate for Vice President Kamala Harris’ running mate, North Carolina Gov. Roy Cooper said Tuesday at a public event that he’s excited that Democrats “have a lot of great options for her to choose from.”

Speaking in coastal Brunswick County with U.S. Environmental Protection Agency Administrator Michael Regan to celebrate federal funding for land conservation, Cooper reiterated his Monday message by saying “this was not the right time for our state or for me to potentially be on a national ticket.”

Cooper, barred by term limits from seeking reelection this year, had been among roughly a dozen potential contenders that Harris’ team was initially looking at for a vice presidential pick. He’s been a surrogate for President Joe Biden’s reelection bid and now for Harris.

“I am going to work every day to see that she is elected,” Cooper told WECT-TV. “I believe that she will win, and I look forward to this campaign because she has the right message and she is the right person for this country.”

In making his decision, Cooper confirmed Tuesday that he was concerned in part about what Republican Lt. Gov. Mark Robinson could do if he left the state to campaign as part of the Democratic ticket. The state constitution says that “during the absence of the Governor from the State ... the Lieutenant Governor shall be Acting Governor.” Robinson is running for governor this fall.

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“We had concerns that he would try to seize the limelight because there would be a lot, if I were the vice presidential candidate, on him, and that would be a real distraction to the presidential campaign,” Cooper said.

Cooper pointed to when he traveled to Japan last fall on an economic development trip. As acting governor at the time, Robinson held a news conference during his absence to announce he had issued a “NC Solidarity with Israel Week” proclamation after the Oct. 7 Hamas attack inside the country.

Cooper withdrew from contention well before Harris’ vetting process began, according to two people familiar with the matter and who spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity to discuss the sensitive search process.

Tuesday’s event at Green Swamp Preserve celebrated a $421 million grant for projects in North Carolina, South Carolina, Virginia and Maryland to reduce climate pollution. The money will be used to preserve, enhance or restore coastal habitats, forests and farmland, Cooper’s office said.