“It says to the heartland of America, ‘You’re not a flyover zone for us — we’re all together in this,’” Representative Nancy Pelosi, the former House speaker, said in a brief interview on Tuesday. She said she had not spoken with Ms. Harris during the process, though she hailed the outcome: “House members are thrilled.”
Mr. Shapiro, Mr. Walz and others campaigned hard for the post, in public and private.
Both Mr. Shapiro and Mr. Walz called Democratic members of Congress and other influential stakeholders, including Randi Weingarten, the influential head of the American Federation of Teachers. Ms. Weingarten relayed to the Harris team that her labor union, which has at times had disagreements with Mr. Shapiro, would support whomever she would pick.
While Mr. Shapiro and Mr. Walz were cordial about each other, their allies were less polite.
Progressive Democrats who wanted Mr. Walz to be the pick debated the appropriateness of labeling Mr. Shapiro “Genocide Josh,” an epithet some in the discussion viewed as antisemitic given that he has had nothing to do with American foreign policy toward Israel, and circulated his decades-old and since-disavowed college writings about the Middle East. Mr. Shapiro’s supporters dismissed Mr. Walz as someone who would not deliver any state to bring Ms. Harris closer to the White House.
Going into the weekend, Ms. Harris’s choice was anything but a foregone conclusion.
On Friday, a small group of her allies conducted pre-interviews with a group of six finalists. The questioners included Marty Walsh, who had served as Mr. Biden’s labor secretary; Mr. Richmond, a campaign co-chair; Tony West, Ms. Harris’s brother-in-law; Dana Remus, a former White House counsel; and Senator Catherine Cortez Masto of Nevada.
The finalists included Pete Buttigieg, the transportation secretary, and two other Democratic governors: Andy Beshear of Kentucky and JB Pritzker of Illinois. During those interviews, vetting materials, which included questions on everything from past political decisions to details on their personal lives, were reviewed with the candidates. At one point in his interview, Mr. Walz volunteered that he had never previously used a teleprompter, according to one person involved in the process.