Mark Kelly issues statement on Kamala Harris' running mate pick | 2024 Election

PHOENIX - Arizona Senator Mark Kelly, who was once considered to be a possible running mate pick for Kamala Harris' presidential campaign, issued a statement after Minnesota Governor Tim Walz was selected as Harris' running mate.

In the statement posted to X (formerly Twitter), Kelly said Harris and Walz "are going to move us forward."

"They’re already building a campaign to unite our country — and [Gabby Giffords] and I are ready to do everything we can to help them win," the X post reads.

Mark Kelly (Photo by Rob Schumacher-Pool/Getty Images)

As mentioned above, Kelly was one of the names that have been tossed around as Harris' running mate in the November election. In an Associated Press article published on Aug. 2, it was reported that Kelly, along with Walz, Govs. Andy Beshear of Kentucky, J.B. Pritzker of Illinois, Josh Shapiro of Pennsylvania, and Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg, were being interviewed by Harris ahead of the VP pick announcement.

On his part, Walz wrote on his X account that it is "the honor of a lifetime:" to join Harris in the campaign.

"I'm all in," the governor wrote.

Harris stepped into the presidential race after President Joe Biden ended his re-election attempt in July.

"Nothing, nothing can come in the way of saving our democracy," Biden said during a televised address. "And that includes personal ambition."

Biden's withdrawal came after a disastrous debate with Donald Trump that raised doubts about the incumbent’s fitness for office. The unprecedented announcement, delivered less than four months before the election, immediately upended a campaign that both political parties view as the most consequential in generations.

The Associated Press (AP) contributed to this report