Washington DC – The vice presidency in the United States does not have much power, however, the names of the vice presidential candidates appear on ballots, posters and campaign articles alongside the main presidential candidates.
Vice presidents can play an enormous role in the White House beyond the narrow authorities granted to them by the U.S. Constitution. And as candidates, they can help carry your campaign message and push it forward.
This year, President Joe Biden is expected to stick with Vice President Kamala Harris as his running mate. Former President Donald Trump will announce his vice presidential pick during or shortly before the Republican National Convention next month.
The vice president is elected as part of the presidential formula. So if people vote to re-elect Biden as president, they indirectly elect Harris for another four-year term as vice president.
As the campaign season heats up, Al Jazeera looks at the vice presidential position in the United States and how vice presidential candidates are chosen.
What is the role of the vice president in the constitution?
Christopher Devine, a political science professor at the University of Dayton who has written two books on vice presidential candidates, said the vice president has a “very limited set of responsibilities” under the constitution.
“The vice president replaces the president if something happens: death, resignation or even in case of temporary disability. That’s the most important one,” Devine told Al Jazeera.
The vice president also casts the tie-breaking vote in the Senate, something Harris did regularly in the first two years of Biden's presidency, when the chamber was split 50-50 between Republicans and Democrats.
The vice president is also the president of the Senate, but in recent decades vice presidents have largely stopped presiding over legislative proceedings (a largely ceremonial role).
What does the vice president do beyond his official duties?
Today vice presidents act as presidential advisors. They are expected to be the “last person in the room” before the president makes important decisions, Devine said.
“They also perform other functions, such as liaising with Congress and helping negotiate legislative issues,” he told Al Jazeera.
“Of course, they have some role in foreign policy: meeting foreign heads of state or carrying out diplomatic missions, attending funerals and things like that. So there are a lot of things that vice presidents do. But most of what they do is not required by the Constitution.”
Who defines the role of the vice president?
Modern American history has seen powerful vice presidents – such as Dick Cheney, especially during George W. Bush's first term – as well as others who had a low profile and were not seen as central to his administration, such as Mike Pence, former vice president. of Trump.
Devine said the president ultimately shapes the role of the vice president.
“It really depends on each president. Therefore, vice presidents can be a great resource in advising the president on important issues. They could also be pushed to the side,” he told Al Jazeera.
Lindsay Chervinsky, a presidential historian, said another factor that determines vice presidents' level of influence is their own experience and relationships.
For example, Cheney had been secretary of defense, congressman, and White House chief of staff.
“They need to have something they can bring to the table in a way that allows them to draw on their experience and connections to make an impact,” Chervinsky said of vice presidents.
How are vice president candidates chosen?
Unlike presidential candidates, vice presidential candidates do not run in party primaries. They are chosen once the presidential candidate is determined.
Presidential candidates choose their own running mates, who then earn the official nomination during their party's convention.
Devine said candidates typically start with a long list of candidates and then begin to narrow it down after rounds of interviews and background checks.
“The vetting process is incredibly invasive because they are trying to find out if there are any closeted secrets that could come to light about the vice presidential candidate during the campaign,” Devine said.
“Then they ask for tax records, medical records, they do interviews with people who have worked with the candidates, with family members. “They want to know everything.”
What do presidential candidates look for in a running mate?
Chervinsky said candidates typically want their vice president to be a good public speaker to promote the campaign message; He also helps to be an “attack dog” who can effectively reprimand opponents.
“They also tend to look for someone who is different from them in some way,” Chervinsky added.
Considerations could include race, age, gender and experience, to help with so-called input balancing, which aims to broaden the appeal of the campaign.
For example, Biden chose Harris, a Black woman who is considerably younger than him. Barack Obama, his first-term senator at the time, chose Biden, who had been in the Senate for 35 years.
Devine said that beyond electoral politics, candidates are also looking for a capable governing partner.
“They're looking at who can help win the election, but they're also looking long-term at who can help govern once they're in office,” he said.
Do vice presidential picks matter in elections?
Both Devine and Chervinsky said vice presidential candidates don't make or break campaigns.
“To the extent that they matter, it is by influencing how people view the trial of presidential candidates,” Devine said. “Do they make responsible decisions or not?”
What's up with Trump's VP pick?
Trump had fallen out with his former vice president after Pence refused to use his ceremonial role of counting electoral college votes in Congress to overturn Biden's victory.
“It's clear that Trump is looking for someone who will be loyal to him above all else, including the Constitution,” Chervinsky said.
He added that he may choose a woman or a person of color as his running mate to appeal to those subsets of voters.
Trump's presumed vice presidential picks include Congresswoman Elise Stefanik, Senator Tim Scott, Senator JD Vance and North Dakota Governor Doug Burgum. Scott is the only black Republican in the US Senate.
“The ideal would be to look for someone who could be the responsible partner of the ruling party, but I don't think that's generally how their considerations are made,” Chervinsky said of Trump.
