Running mates that never were.

[retromike22]

Who do you think failed primary presidential candidates would have selected as their running mates if they had won their party's primary?  Not whom you would prefer, but who you think would be the MOST LIKELY choice?

Here's my first set:

2008: Clinton/Obama, Edwards/Obama; Romney/Pawlenty, Huckabee/Brownback

[MASHED POTATOES. VOTE!]

2008: Clinton/Obama, Clinton/Bayh, Clinton/Clark

2000: McCain/Thompson

1952: Taft/MacArthur
 

[bhouston79]

Clinton would have chosen Obama if she had have managed to squeak out a win in a very closely contested primary because her failure to do so would have alienated a lot of young voters and a lot of African Americans.  On the other hand, if Obama's campaign had have never caught on and Clinton had have coasted to the nomination like many pundits expected, I think she would have probably chosen a DLC centrist Democrat, but it's hard to say exactly whom.

Romney would have probably chosen a conservative Republican from the South in order to shore up the evangelical vote, although I doubt he would have chosen Huckabee since those two didn't get along at all.  The now Disgraced SC governor would have no doubt been in contention as would have been Haley Barbour.

Huckabee may very well have chosen John McCain.  Those two seemed to get along really well, and even after all of the other candidates were gone and it was just those two left standing (although Huckabee didn't have any realistic chance) Huckabee never really took any potshots at John McCain (he took plenty at Mitt Romeny).

As far as past elections, here are a few guesses (don't take these too seriously

2004:  Howard Dean/Mark Warner
2000:  John McCain/Jeb Bush; Bill Bradley/Zell Miller (I would have loved to have seen Jeb Bush and Zell Miller square off in a duel!)
1996:  Steve Forbes/Steven Jobs
1992:  Paul Tsongas/Sam Nunn
1988:  Jessie Jackson/Jeremiah Wright; Pat Robertson/Jerry Faldwell)
1984:  Gary Hart/Mario Cuomo
1980:  Ted Kennedy/Jerry Brown;  George W. Bush/Howard Baker
1976:  Henry M. Jackson/Lloyd Bentsen;  Ronald Reagan/Richard Schweiker

[retromike22]

Here are some more:

2004: Edwards/Gephardt, Dean/Edwards, Gephardt/Edwards
2000: McCain/Sen Connie Mack (R-FL), or McCain/Chuck Hagel