10 People of Color Hillary Clinton Could Pick as Her Vice President

Democratic presidential front-runner Hillary Clinton will be announcing her running mate within the next two months. Yes, that person is more than likely to be Sen. Tim Kaine (D-Va.), who is in an important swing state and speaks fluent Spanish, but we can dream, can’t we?

Here are 10 African-American and Latino prospects the former secretary of state could select from for a vice presidential nominee.

Perez, who is currently the secretary of labor in President Barack Obama’s Cabinet, has also been assistant attorney general for the Civil Rights Division of the Department of Justice. Right now he’s at the top of everyone’s “Hillary VP List.” Perez will be speaking at Virginia’s Jefferson Jackson Dinner the month before the convention, and it’s likely that Kaine and Sen. Mark Warner (D-Va.) will be speaking there, too, making this a VP-sweepstakes jamboree event. 

Castro was mayor of San Antonio for five years and is currently the secretary of housing and urban development in the Obama administration. As one of Clinton’s youngest vice presidential prospects at age 41, he is an unlikely fit for her, but he has been on the campaign trail with her a lot.   

California Rep. Xavier Becerra is a well-liked, veteran House member who is the highest-ranking Latino lawmaker in the Democratic Party. Known as an energetic campaigner with an engaging persona, Becerra could be a sleeper pick for Clinton. Although he is in a state that she is likely to win easily in the general election, Becerra would likely do very well attracting Hispanic voters.  

The former mayor of Newark, N.J., is in his first term in the U.S. Senate and is widely viewed as someone aspiring to higher office. With 1.63 million Twitter followers and a vibrant Instagram following, New Jersey’s most enthusiastic vegan lawmaker could be a way for Clinton to attract millennials. But since New Jersey is a solidly blue state, Booker may be a harder pick to make as a running mate than someone from Florida, Virginia or Ohio.  

The former Massachusetts governor has been mentioned several times as an option for Clinton. Just like Booker, however, he’s from a state that she will win. Although Patrick is likely on her long list, he may be a better fit as Clinton’s first attorney general. 

Harris, currently the attorney general of California, is the only other African-American Democrat who has recently run statewide and won, other than Booker. She is a sure bet to join Booker in the Senate in January 2017, but as demonstrated by the excitement some have for Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.), an all-female ticket could be a very exciting option. Harris is likely to be part of that historic consideration by Clinton, of whether to choose another woman as her running mate.

Richardson is a longtime buddy of the Clintons and was appointed United Nations ambassador by then-President Bill Clinton. The only catch is that Richardson was decidedly not so ready for Hillary Clinton in 2008, when he endorsed then-Sen. Barack Obama over her (although, if that’s going to be an issue for Team Hillary, then Kaine is also busted). Richardson is a former member of Congress, chair of the Congressional Hispanic Caucus and governor of New Mexico. As a Spanish speaker with a sparkling résumé on both foreign and domestic policy, he can’t be completely ignored.  

Foxx is Obama’s secretary of transportation and is from a key swing state where African-American turnout is vital in November: North Carolina. Logic dictates that if Castro is being considered because he’s in the Cabinet, then Foxx should be, too. Foxx became the youngest mayor of Charlotte, N.C., in 2009 before joining Obama’s Cabinet in 2013.  

Do you need any more foreign policy experience on a ticket that includes Hillary Clinton? No. But if you did, and if you wanted to shock the political world, then you’d pick current National Security Adviser Susan Rice as your vice presidential choice.  

Oh, wouldn’t this be so much fun, just to see everyone’s head spin around and around in Rightwinglandia? There is only one other person who knew what it was like to deal with the constant hellfire from the right while simultaneously being revered in the black community: Obama’s former attorney general.