Washington, DC, USA. Some governors on the shortlist of potential picks for vice president could turn their states upside down politically if they actually got the nod.

 

If picked to serve in an Obama administration, at least three Democratic governors would have to leave their states to Republicans, who are now second in command. A McCain presidency could mean at least one “red’ governership going Democratic “blue.”

 

While many people assume that lieutenant governors are of the same party as the state’s No. 1, that is not always the case. In 18 states, voters elect the governor and lieutenant governor separately, a situation that can lead to a split ticket. Democrats currently hold 28 governorships to 22 for the Republicans.

 

Democratic Govs. Tim Kaine of Virginia, Janet Napolitano of Arizona, Brian Schweitzer of Montana and Kathleen Sebelius of Kansas are often mentioned by political and media analysts as contenders for the No. 2 spot or a Cabinet post under the presumed Democratic nominee, U.S. Sen. Barack Obama. But the consequences could cost the party locally.

On the Republican side, Louisiana Gov. Bobby Jindal is getting lots of buzz. But if he were tapped to serve in a McCain administration, Democratic Lt. Gov. Mitch Landrieu would take over.

 

Republican Minnesota Gov. Tim Pawlenty’s early support of McCain gives him a leg up in the parlor game of vice-presidential speculation. His successor, Lt. Gov. Carol Molnau, is a Republican but she has attracted controversy. The state Senate last February removed her from her simultaneous post as transportation commissioner. Pawlenty was criticized in the aftermath of last summer’s I-35 bridge collapse, which killed 13 people, for allowing her to hold both jobs.

 

Other current governors whose names have surfaced as potential vice-presidential or Cabinet picks come from states where the governor and lieutenant governor run on the same ticket, so the impact would not be as politically upsetting. These include

History shows it’s a good bet at least a few governors or former governors will be packing for Washington, D.C., in 2009.

 

President Bush turned to four of his fellow Republican governors in his first term:

Two more governors were tapped in Bush’s second term:

 

 

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