McCain would have to devote at least 10 minutes of every stump speech to explaining who Sarah Palin is.
Lol. I never understood why some people thought "name recognition" would be a factor in VP picks. Once you're picked as a major party's VP nominee, you'll get enough news coverage that people who know who you are well before election day.I'd argue...
I do think name recognition has a role in media narrative, though, which is extremely important with VP picks. "Who is this woman and what do we know about her?" is a mis-fire; "surprising maverick breath of fresh air!" is a hit. In the end, it's not like having a low-recognition VP makes an electoral difference outside of having less of a home-state impact.
But, more than with President (where the idea of low name recognition after an extended primary/general is just stupid, unless they're just totally eclipsed) the VP's recognition does shape first-glance perception.
