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McCain Veepstakes

 In the third of Salon's pick-a-vice-president questionnaires, help Republican John McCain select a running mate. (McCain will be 72 in August. It matters.)

May. 13, 2008 | John McCain is the last white male left standing in a Republican presidential field that once held a whole Elks Club of his kind. His place atop the GOP ticket is remarkable, given that his cash-strapped campaign was given up for dead before the New Hampshire primary -- but also because be remains passionately unloved by his party's rank and file.

In choosing a running mate, McCain can either try to make nice with the GOP base, or pick a candidate who'll prove attractive to independent voters. It'll be hard to find a veep who swings both ways -- no offense intended to John Hagee. Should he give the vice-presidential nod to a candidate who will shore up his support with white evangelicals? Would a fire-breathing anti-immigration activist reassure those Republicans who find McCain insufficiently ferocious on the subject of Mexicans? Or should he pick someone who'll attract moderates, or deliver a purple state, in a year when a Republican victory is not a lock?

Salon has assembled a list of 15 possible vice-presidential running mates for John McCain. Based on your hunches about what kind of partner might help (or hinder, if you prefer) McCain's chances in the general election, answer the following questions, and see which three faces pop up on Page 2 after you press "Vote."

  1. The running mate should be a:
  2. The running mate should be from the:
  3. The running mate should be:
  4. The running mate should be:
  5. How old should the running mate be?
  6. Should the running mate have served in the military?
  7. On the subject of global warming, the running mate:
  8. Regarding Iran, the running mate:
  9. Has the running mate endorsed:
  10. Regarding gay marriage, the running mate:
  11. Regarding immigration, the running mate:
  12. Regarding abortion, the running mate is:
  13. How does the running mate part his or her hair?

On the Ballot:

CandidatePercentage of reader vote
Gen. Colin Powell  12%
Gov. Sarah Palin (R-Alaska)  10%
Former Gov. Mike Huckabee (R-Ark.)  10%
Gov. Charlie Crist (R-Fla.)  10%
Gov. Tim Pawlenty (R-Minn.)  10%
Gov. Mark Sanford (R-S.C.)  8%
Gov. Bobby Jindal (R-La.)  7%
Former Sen. Fred Thompson (R-Tenn.)  7%
Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice  6%
Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchison (R-Texas)  3%
Former Gov. Mitt Romney (R-Mass.)  3%
Former Mayor Rudy Giuliani (R-New York City)  3%
Sen. Joe Lieberman (I-Conn.)  2%
Former Gov. Jeb Bush (R-Fla.)  1%
Sen. Wayne Allard (R-Colo.)  1%

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