Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney could be just days away from making a big announcement. The former governor of Massachusetts could announce as soon as Thursday who he'll pick for his vice presidential running mate.
Once again, Virginia Governor Bob McDonnell's name is being tossed around. This time, by Shaun Kenney, the Republican chair of Fluvanna County's Board of Supervisors and the former communications director for Virginia's Republican Party.
In a blog post on the conservative website Bearing Drift, Kenney says he's calling it now for McDonnell. The headline reads, "I'm Calling It - Bob McDonnell is your VP Nominee."
Summertime speculation about who's going to be picked to be Romney's running mate isn't anything new.
"This happens every four years," University of Virginia Center For Politics Director Larry Sabato said.
Sabato says even though an announcement from the Romney campaign is expected in a matter of days, it's still anybody's guess. Governor Bob McDonnell has been mentioned as a possibility before.
"Their job is to keep it a secret, and to keep it a surprise," Sabato said. "And in order to do that, they have to make people think it's A, B, C, D, E, F and Bob McDonnell is a part of the alphabet."
Other contenders include Senator Rob Portman of Ohio, former Minnesota Governor Tim Pawlenty, Florida Senator Marco Rubio, Wisconsin Representative Paul Ryan, and Louisiana Governor Bobby Jindal. Sabato says he'd actually be surprised if McDonnell beat out the others.
"The early polls have shown McDonnell is adding nothing to Romney in Virginia, but that might change if he's actually put on the ticket," Sabato said.
On the streets of Charlottesville Monday, opinions were mixed.
"I don't know much about him," Bob Cutting of Wilmington, North Carolina said. "Which is probably not a good sign, since I'm in the neighboring state, so he's a rising star I understand, but not yet. You know, it'd be nice to see a woman on the ticket."
Terry Schotwell of Charlottesville said, "They're all fighting for Virginia right now, both of them...and I do believe that by picking McDonnell [Romney] feels like he might win Virginia this time."
If an announcement happens later this week, it is important to keep in mind that Romney has multiple campaign events in Virginia on Saturday with Governor McDonnell.
