Harris’s exit preserves viability as a potential vice president

“Getting out now actually preserves a lot of her strength as a vice-presidential candidate,” said Democratic strategist Max Burns. “The last thing she wanted to do was come in sixth or seventh place in Iowa and then worst-case scenario, go on to South Carolina and finish second or third there.”…

“She is a tough campaigner with strong ties to networks of black voters in the South where Democrats must win,” Allison said. “The top of the ticket must appeal to the base, and the Democrats should learn the lesson of 2016. No all white ticket.”

But whether she is tapped as a running mate will depend in part on who is chosen as the Democratic nominee. A white man like Joe Biden, Bernie Sanders or Pete Buttigieg would have an incentive to pick someone like her to balance the ticket, while another female U.S. senator like Elizabeth Warren may have less to gain.