Michael Toner Comments on Whether Naming Running Mate Could Attract Delegates at RNC

April 15, 2016

Michael E. Toner, co-chair of Wiley Rein’s Election Law & Government Ethics Practice, was quoted in an article published this week in CNN.com on whether the selection of a running mate would help any of the Republican presidential candidates gain the 1,237 delegates needed to clinch the nomination. In light of a possible contested convention at the upcoming Republican National Convention, the process could be challenging.

According to the article, the delegates will usually “rubber stamp” the presumptive nominee’s choice of a running mate. This year the convention can set up the nomination as it wishes, and it’s likely the organizational committee will move the vice presidential process nomination to the end.

But there’s a risk in picking a running mate too quickly, said Mr. Toner, a former Federal Election Commission chairman and CNN delegate analyst.

“I think that what’s really important is that there be a thorough vetting of any potential running mate and that the time be devoted to doing that, and we’ve certainly seen instances in the past when that did not happen,” Toner said. “You can’t short-circuit the vetting process.”

To read the full article, please here.