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Campaign Veepstakes: A Preview

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The Washington Post

Published: May 19, 2008

WASHINGTON - If Sen. John McCain and Sen. Barack Obama receive their parties' nominations, here's a look at the logical vice presidential candidates who might accompany them on their tickets, ranked in the order of likelihood. No. 1 is the likeliest.

REPUBLICANS

5. Mitt Romney: A few months ago, it would have seemed crazy to include Romney on a list of potential McCain picks. It was an open secret that the two men didn't like each another, but politics is funny, and Romney is charting an aggressive fundraising schedule on behalf of McCain.

4. Charlie Crist: No single politician had more to do with McCain becoming his party's standard-bearer. Crist's endorsement just before the Sunshine State primary put McCain over the top and cemented his grip on the nomination. But, if polling is to be believed, McCain may have an easier time in Florida if Obama is the nominee and won't necessarily need Crist.

3. Rob Portman: Portman, who spent 12 years in Congress before several stints in the Bush White House, will be a finalist. Why? He hails from Ohio - perhaps the swingingest of swing states this fall - and is widely acknowledged as an expert on economics.

2. John Thune: Thune comes across as a moderate, despite his clear conservative voting record. He also is a hero in conservative circles, thanks to his defeat of then-Sen. Tom Daschle (S.D.) in 2004. The one knock is that he hails from a state that is already well in hand for Republicans.

1. Tim Pawlenty: The Minnesota governor remains the single possibility who best fits what McCain wants and needs in a VP. Pawlenty has been elected twice in a Democratic-leaning state that is almost certain to be a battleground. He is liked and respected by conservatives and moderates, and he gets rave reviews for his political instincts. He has also known McCain for nearly three decades and, at 47, could allay some concerns about McCain's age.

DEMOCRATS

5. Sam Nunn: It's hard to argue with Nunn's place as one of the pre-eminent Democratic thinkers on foreign policy and defense issues. He spent more than two decades in the Senate representing Georgia and chaired the Armed Services Committee. That resume, coupled with Nunn being a white Southerner, could make him an appealing pick for Obama.

4. Tim Kaine: Kaine's great strengths in this process are biography and geography. A former missionary and a man who is eager to talk about his faith, Kaine could help Obama bridge the "God gap" that has emerged in recent presidential elections. He also is the highest-ranking elected official in Virginia, an emerging battleground state, and his popularity, coupled with Obama's appeal to African-American voters statewide and white voters in Northern Virginia, could make the contest for the Old Dominion a barnburner.

3. Hillary Rodham Clinton: After Clinton's speech in Indianapolis, many within the party thought she was opening the door to the idea of sharing the ticket with Obama. Her rhetoric since, however, particularly her comments about "white voters," may quash the "Dream Ticket" talk before it begins in earnest. Clinton has broad support within the Democratic Party, but picking her as vice president would seem to run counter to Obama's change message.

2. Ted Strickland: Although Obama may not feel compelled to name Clinton to the ticket, he is well aware of the need to offer an olive branch of sorts to her backers. Strickland, the first-term governor of Ohio, may fit the bill. Not only is he an active and high-profile Clinton supporter, but he is also the popular chief executive of a state that Obama must find a way to win.

1. Kathleen Sebelius: The second-term Kansas governor earns the top spot because of her ability to further bolster Obama's strengths while not exacerbating his weaknesses. Picking Sebelius would affirm Obama's core message of change and would give Obama's run even more historic weight. Sebelius' electoral success in traditionally Republican Kansas also would echo Obama's pledge to change the electoral map.

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