KAMALA HARRIS is Joe Biden’s choice for the 2020 Democratic vice presidential nominee (Flicker/Gage Skidmore).

Democratic ticket is Joe and Kamala

Kamala Harris will be the Democratic Party’s nominee for vice president of the United States in the Nov. 3 election.

Joe Biden, who will head the ticket as the presidential candidate, made the announcement today (Monday) to select Harris. She is the junior U.S. Senator from California and is the first woman of color to be nominated for national office by any major American political party.

In an e-mail message, Biden, a former U.S. senator from Delaware and former vice president under Barack Obama, sent this message to supporters: “Joe Biden here. Big news: I’ve chosen Kamala Harris as my running mate. Together with you, we’re going to beat [President Donald] Trump.”

Biden is 77 and Harris is 55. The former veep’s age has led some to speculate that – if elected this fall – he would not run for re-election in 2024, making Harris the front runner for the Democratic presidential nod that year.

A new national poll by Monmouth University released today shows Biden with a lead of 51 percent of registered voters to 41 percent for Trump, with 4 percent undecided. RealClearPolitics.com’s average of recent presidential polls shows a narrower race of 49.1 to 41.9 percent. A poll by The Hill/HarrisX has Biden with 43 percent and Trump with 40 percent.

The Pac-12, Big 10 call off 2020 football season

Prospects for college football this fall plunged today as two of the five “power conferences” announced they would cancel this season. The Big Ten (which actually has 12 teams) and the Pac-12 each made public their respective decisions because of the impact of the coronavirus.

THE PAC-12 and Big Ten are cancelling their 2020 football seasons.

“This was an extremely difficult and painful decision that we know will have important impacts on our student athletes, coaches administrators and our fans,” said Pac-12 Commissioner Larry Scott. “We know nothing will ease that.”

The Mid-American Conference, a “mid-major,” announced a similar decision last week. The three remaining power conferences – The Atlantic Coast Conference, the Big 12, and the Southeastern Conference – are still planning on playing football this fall, at least so far.

UCLA and USC were planning a conference-only season starting on Sept. 26 in a game pitting the Bruins and the Trojans in a game at the Rose Bowl.

It’s still possible – if public health problems ease – that a spring season could be arranged for 2021.