In an election as divisive as this, it may not seem important to know about what the vice presidential candidates stand for. However, it’s especially important to know a bit about the VP picks in this election for a few reasons:
- Over 40% of Americans can’t name either one of the VP picks from either major party. This was found in a poll conducted by ABC News and the Social Science Research Solutions survey firm. See more details of the poll here.
- Trump indicated Mike Pence will be in charge of domestic and foreign policy while Trump focuses on making America great again. So, Pence would essentially be the President.
- Clinton (68) and Trump (70) make up the oldest presidential matchup in US history; i.e. strong supporters are saying the other candidate will kick the bucket while in office. Classy on both sides.
- Getting informed about where VP candidates stand on issues can provide more support for who you plan to vote for, or can help you choose your vote if you are undecided.
The VP debate was on Tuesday, so if you missed it this is a good way to get caught up. I compiled information from a few different sources to give some background about the candidates and to give a look into where they stand on hot-button issues. Personal information about the candidates came from here for Tim Kaine, and here for Mike Pence. To find out where candidates stood on policy issues, I referenced Kaine v. Pence, Preparing for the VP debate, and Possible VP Picks.
I hope this table helps you feel informed about where the possible vice presidents stand on different issues. Of course, this doesn’t cover everything, so don’t hesitate to dig a little deeper if you have more questions.