Kamala Harris says she is saddened by the fact that she considered picking a gay man as her running mate in the 2024 presidential race to be too great a risk. The former vice president joined Rachel Maddow on her MSNBC show Monday night to discuss her new book, 107 Days, about her historic presidential campaign. In the book, Harris reveals that then-Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg was her first choice to be her running mate. Insights for the LGBTQ+ community Subscribe to our briefing for insights into how politics impacts the LGBTQ+ community and more. During their conversation, Maddow asked Harris about that revelation, noting that it is “hard to hear” that Harris felt Buttigieg “couldn’t be on the ticket effectively because he is gay.”Harris clarified that she never said Buttigieg couldn’t be her running mate because he is gay.