Would a candidate's choice of running mate ever decide your vote?
Posted at 5:00 AM on May 26, 2010
by Eric Ringham
(20 Comments)
Filed under: Politics/Government
Candidates for governor of Minnesota have been announcing their running mates ahead of a June 1 filing deadline. Today's Question: Would a candidate's choice of running mate ever decide your vote?
Comments (20)
One of the things I look at in the choice of running mate is what the candidate seems to be trying to accomplish with it.
If the choice looks like a ruse to create an image or woo a very polarized contingent of voters, I wouldn't vote for them if they paid me. If it looks like someone chosen for their work record and their ability to jump in and function constructively with both sides of the aisle, I'm definitely more interested in that candidate.
I like Tom Horner; but the electability question looms large. I don't know much about Emmer; but the more I hear him speak, the less I like.
It could. Not just because that person might wind up governing, but because the choice would make a statement about the chooser's values.
Also, if i felt the choice was made as a token nod to some group (such as the Sarah Palin joke) it would make me loose respect for the chooser.
Anyone associated with Sarah Palin would never get my vote. She thinks she's qualified for the most important job in the world. A beauty queen who has stumbled onto the national political stage. Who quit the only significantly responsible position she was elected to. Vote for the quitter (not)!
The hubris, the delusion. Frightening.
I'm much less concerned at the MN Governor level.
Arizona Governor Jan Brewer for President with Sarah Palin as VP. Patriots with some fortitude.
Well, I wasn't a big Tom Emmer fan when he won the Republican Nomination. However, the minute he announced Ann Meeks was going to be his Lieutenant Governor, I jumped ship. I'm fully aware of who Ms Meeks is and what she stands for; therefore, my choice for Governor this year will either be an Independent or a Democrat.
I have always considered the choice of a running mate the first indication of a candidate's judgement. Their judgement influences my choice of who to vote for.
It has before. In McCain vs Obama, the idea that their was a chance of the VP actually becoming president had me comparing Palin to Biden as potential Commander in Chief. That lead me to cast my vote for the Obama ticket.
It wouldn't be THE determining factor, but it is definitely a major aspect of my decision. In the case of governor, it gives the candidate an opportunity to show where their priorities may lie. Mark Dayton's choice of Yovonne Solon Prettner not only shows he cares about rural Minnesotan issues, but also that he sees a state exists outside of the I-94 loop.
Yes.
The choice of running mate is a first test of the judgement of a candidate.
This has been more important on a national level, but it would mildly affect my decisions at the Governor level as well.
I look for the Lt. Gov. pick to tell me something about a candidate's core priorities and commitment to doing the job of governing. The more politically-calculated choice appears, the more concerns I have about a gubernatorial candidate's likely approach to governance.
Of course it does. The running mate is the person we should expect to take control if something horrible were to happen to the front-runner. We should hold them to as high of standards as we hold our front runners. If anyone thinks this isn't important because such things just don't happen, they weren't paying attention during the Wellstone tragedy.
I was terrified that the Republican candidate was going to bow down to pressure to make good with the tea party and choose Michelle Bachman as a running mate, because in the extremely off chance that they would manage to get elected, I would have had to explain to all my friends in other states why we have someone who is generally regarded as a nutter by everyone outside of her district in such a high position of power in our state. (I imagine the jokes would be worse than they were even when we had a pro-wrestler as Governor.)
bsimon and John - Does it really matter who Entenza picks as running mate when he so far behind the other candidates already? I think I have as good a chance in the governor's race as he does.
I doubt that any running mate choice would make me want to vote for a candidate, but a poor choice may be a factor in deciding to vote against a candidate.
On the (vice) presidential end, I'll echo the sentiments about Quayle and Lieberman, and add Edwards, who had less experience than Quayle. And then there's Palin, in a class by herself.
Kelliher's selection has boosted her a couple points for me; Entenza's selection has dropped his - for one thing, the situation has been handled poorly. Secondly, it has a gimmicky feel to it; didn't Robinson just announce last week she was moving to New Mexico to design jewelry? And now she may stay after all and dip her toe in politics? I don't intend to disparage her motives or abilities, but this doesn't have the feel of a well-thought-out plan.
When Bush the Elder chose Dan Quayle, an obvious lightweight, that should have told us something. Later, the prospect of a President Quayle is one reason GHWB wasn't impeached over the Iran-Contra scandal. When Bush the Younger chose Dick Cheney, some of us wondered why he would choose such a polarizing figure. Later, "President Cheney" kept GWB from being impeached over misleading the nation into the illegal invasion of Iraq. Like father, like son.
What does this have to do with Minnesota gubernatorial candidates? Obviously not much. Everyone knows Minnesota politicians are all fine, upstanding people who would never play political games with the well-being of the state. (Wanna buy a bridge?)
Of course it does. Matt Entenza's decision to consider Robyne (what...?) Robinson as a potential running mate makes me question his sanity. I felt the same way about Al Gore's ill-fated choice of Lieberman.
It's one factor among many. The only time it would be the deciding factor is if the choice is so bad it calls into question the candidate's judgment, but then I expect there would be other reasons not to vote for the candidate as well.
If the running mate affects my choice, doesn’t it mean that either the top spot candidate is not expected to make the full term or that I really don’t like the person and am trying to fool myself?
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