Pritzker won't confirm if he's being considered as possible running mate for Harris
CHICAGO (CBS) -- Gov. JB Pritzker on Thursday denied that Vice President Kamala Harris' campaign reached out to him on Wednesday to discuss him as a possible running mate now that Harris is the likely Democratic nominee for president.
A source familiar with Harris' vetting process told CBS News that Pritzker was contacted by the Harris campaign Wednesday to measure his interest in being her running mate, but Thursday afternoon, Pritzker said "the Harris campaign did not call me yesterday."
"I have had a number of conversations with people. I do regularly with the campaign," Pritzker said Thursday as he and others joined Secret Service officials to discuss security plans for the upcoming Democratic National Convention in Chicago next month.
When asked if he'd received any vetting materials from the Harris campaign, Pritzker said, "I'm not going to talk about any conversations that we've had."
"I haven't talked to the campaign the way you've described. I just spoke with Vice President Harris," he said. "As I say, I don't want to talk about any private conversations I've had, but I will say that I have said directly to the vice president that I'm going to do everything and anything that is necessary to make sure that we beat Donald Trump and JD Vance."
CBS News has reported Pritzker is one of approximately a dozen individuals being vetted as a possible running mate for Harris. Multiple sources tell CBS News that the list of candidates includes several governors, including: Pritzker, Josh Shapiro of Pennsylvania, Roy Cooper of North Carolina, Andy Beshear of Kentucky, Tim Walz of Minnesota, and Gretchen Whitmer of Michigan.
Members of the Biden administration, including Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo and Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg are also being considered, along with Arizona Sen. Mark Kelly, among others.
Asked if he'd be interested in being Harris' running mate, Pritzker hedged.
"I've been honored to have been elected twice as governor of the state of Illinois. I really enjoy the work, sometimes very challenging, but always the opportunity to serve the 13 million people of our state. There's not much that would pull me away from that job," Pritzker said. "Whatever happens in this process that I understand is going on, my job is to make sure that we win in November, so I'm going to work hard to do that."
Pritzker told CNN's Jake Tapper on Wednesday that he'd "be reluctant to make a change" if offered the chance to be Harris' running mate, "but it'd be hard to resist a call and consideration if the nominee called me to ask to be considered for vice president."
Harris has been endorsed by an overwhelming majority of Democratic delegates, setting her up as the likely Democratic nominee.
The Democratic Party will officially choose its new presidential nominee virtually, as soon as Aug. 1, under new rules approved on Wednesday by the DNC rules committee. The nominee, likely Harris, must pick a running mate by Aug. 7, the current deadline in Ohio to finalize the names of the nominees on that state's ballot.
