What are the duties of the vice president of the US?

Kamala Harris has named Tim Walz as her running mate as she battles for the presidency of the United States.

Walz, 60, has served as the 41st governor of Minnesota since 2018, and now he will be campaigning alongside Kamala Harris and the Democrats, with the role of Vice President a possibility.

With that in mind, here’s what may lie ahead for him if Harris is given the keys to the White House in November.

What does the Vice President do?

As second in command behind the President, the Vice President will, according to the official website of the United States senate, “the Constitution names the vice president of the United States as the president of the Senate”.

They serve as presiding officer, “formally presid[ing] over the receiving and counting of electoral ballots cast in presidential elections” as well as having “the sole power to break a tie vote in the Senate”. As head of congress, the VP votes on legislation when Senators are locked at 50-50.

Under Article One, section Three of the constitution, “the Vice President of the United States shall be President of the Senate, but shall have no Vote, unless they be equally divided.”

The 25th Amendment’s Section 4 granted the vice president a key role in a situation where it may be determined that a president is unable to carry out official duties, and has not notified Congress of such.

If this were to happen, the vice president would need the majority support the cabinet, who notify Congress of the president’s inability to serve: in this case, the vice president becomes acting president.

Other, more informal duties of the Vice President include, according to Polyas, “making public appearances representing the President, performing ceremonial duties in place of the President, acting as an adviser to the President and meeting with heads of state or government of other countries”.