Is it normal for a candidate not to have a running mate this late?

[ChavezSpeakstheTruth]

Historically speaking?

[freetobegay]

1. Yes. n/t

ON EDIT: Kerry is the presumptive nominee, not the nominee.

[ChavezSpeakstheTruth]

6. Good point! n/t

[JI7]

2. it's actually considered early right now

i think it would be unusual if kerry made the decision around this month. from what i understand he will probably make the announcement shortly before the convention so maybe in late june or early july.

[ChavezSpeakstheTruth]

4. Ok - thanks. That does make sense.

:)

[dryan]

8. Believe it or not...

The nominee used to announce this at the national. Reagan changed this when he ran in 1976 and announced his before the convention.

[union_maid]

3. Seems normal to me

I seem to recall that they're usually announced at the convention, although I could be wrong. Anyway, Kerry would be crazy to break up this news cycle with an announcement right now.

[Perky]

5. yes

Dab Quayle was not chosen until te week of the convention. Probably the biggest reason is that it gives the opposition a secod target to shoot at.

[Monte Carlo]

7. This late!?

This early, is more like it. JFK wasn't picked at the Democratic nominee in 1960 until the waning hours of the convention, and that was in September, forget about his VP choice.

This election is very unusual because it started so early. The VP choice will come.

[Walt Starr]

9. If there was a VP before the convention

that would be the earliest in history.

[daveskilt]

10. It seems late because we got a presumptive nominee early

normally we would only have had an idea of who the nominee is for half the time we have known it would be kerry. Hence the news guys have nothing to talk about (heaven forbid they focus on shrubs plummeting approval, failed policies and failing oil war) so the who is the VP talk started months earlier than usual. This make the short attention span of americans start them longing for the conclusion they are used to getting in 30 minutes from their other TV entertainment.

[trogdor]

13. Waiting is a good thing.

...as Martha S. would say. Right now, you hear it in the media every day. Somebody "leaks" a fake list of names, and the press is all over it. Positive/negative reactions to some of the names is duly noted. Since you can't hold a primary for veep, this is the way to get the public's input without committing yourself. Besides, the longer he waits (until convention time), the more buzz it generates. You can't buy buzz with any amount of money.

[SheilaT]

11. In 1960 JFK didn't even announce

he was running until some time in January that year. In 1968 RFK didn't declare until the middle of March, after the New Hampshire primary -- which was in March that year.

[Warpy]

12. You mean before the CONVENTION that

..says he's the candidate?

Hell yes.

[RoyGBiv]

14. When they announced...

This is a brief list of when candidates announced their running mates going back to the 1988 election:

Dukakis : July, 1988
Bush I : July, 1988
Clinton : July, 1992
Dole : August, 1996
Gore : August, 2000
Bush II : July, 2000

All announcements were made close to the convention.

[ElsewheresDaughter]

15. thought the nominee/VP is usually announced at the democratic convention

[Jeff in Cincinnati]

16. So you're saying that there's still hope...

that Kerry might choose ME!

Hey, I live in a battleground state and I can deliver up to a dozen votes (that's assuming that me and the missus vote four or five times each).