Days ahead of the Democratic National Convention in Philadelphia, presumptive democratic presidential nominee Hillary Clinton finally selected her vice presidential running mate in Virginia senator Tim Kaine.
In addition to his work in congress, Kaine brings plenty of government experience to the table for Clinton including time spent as major of Richmond, Governor of Virginia and chair of the Democratic National Committee.
I'm thrilled to announce my running mate, @TimKaine, a man who's devoted his life to fighting for others. -H pic.twitter.com/lTVyfztE5Z
— Hillary Clinton (@HillaryClinton) July 23, 2016
Like Donald Trump’s selection of Mike Pence as his VP running mate, Clinton’s choice of Kaine is very telling of the direction and strategy of her campaign.
Kaine off-hand seems to be a very safe selection for Clinton who’ll attempt to expand her voting base with more moderate independent and republicans as we further progress into the general election. Confident in her attempt to secure Bernie Sanders supporters, Clinton will look at those moderates who are perhaps disillusioned with a potential Donald Trump presidency especially after his very dark acceptance speech at the RNC last Thursday night.
Securing a larger portion of the hispanic vote is also something Kaine could help Clinton achieve. A former missionary, Kaine speaks fluent Spanish and could drive that dagger further into Trump’s chances at winning the White House. At last check, Trump is polling in the teens with Hispanics, numbers that’ll likely lose him the general election. In 2012 Mitt Romney won around 29 percent of the Hispanic vote and still lost to Barack Obama.
The Clinton campaign could also be looking at an electoral college strategy as well. For instance Kaine is very popular in Virginia and could set themselves up for a big election night if they’re able to win the State. Winning Virginia may also provide some insurance for the Clinton campaign if they fail to secure Florida and/or Ohio.
Kaine may also help Clinton with white male voters but at the same time the Virginia senator isn’t going to be a guy that’ll steal headlines, something that’ll probably still work in Donald Trump’s favor.
Kaine’s selection may also help drive more left and right leaning independents third party who aren’t happy with either choice in Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump. Don’t be surprised if you see Jill Stein and Gary Johnson‘s numbers improve a bit in the coming weeks.