Kamala Harris, the de facto Democratic nominee for US president, has named Tim Walz, the governor of Minnesota, as her running mate ahead of the November election.
The decision ends intense speculation over which candidate Harris would pick to go up against Donald Trump, the Republican nominee and former president, and his choice for vice-president, Ohio senator JD Vance.
Some political commentators had suggested that, as the first woman of colour nominated by a major party, Harris was mostly likely to pick a white man to balance the ticket.
The 59-year-old former California senator is looking to build on a successful campaign launch after stepping in to replace Joe Biden, who bowed to pressure from Democratic colleagues and dropped out of the race after a disastrous debate performance against Trump.
Harris and her running mate can expect a rapturous welcome at the Democratic national convention in Chicago starting on 19 August.
She has been endorsed by former presidents Barack Obama and Bill Clinton.
A New York Times/Siena College national opinion poll published on July 25 found that Harris has narrowed what had been a sizable Trump lead.
Trump was ahead of Harris 48% to 46% among registered voters, compared with a lead of 49% to 41% over Biden in early July.
