Republican Party vice presidential candidate selection, 1980

Former Texas Congressman George H.W. Bush was chosen as the Republican nominee for vice president in 1980.

This article lists those who were potential candidates for the Republican nomination for Vice President of the United States in the 1980 election. Former California Governor Ronald Reagan won the 1980 Republican nomination for President of the United States, and chose former Texas Representative George H.W. Bush as his running mate. Reagan had considered naming former president Gerald Ford as his running mate, but after Ford and Reagan were unable to agree to be on the same ticket (a televised interview with Ford brought up possibility of a "co-presidency"), Reagan turned to Bush, his primary rival for the 1980 Republican nomination.^[1][2] Though Bush had criticized Reagan's policies, Reagan chose Bush to help unify the party, and Bush agreed to be on the ticket and to support Reagan's platform.^[3][4] The Reagan-Bush ticket defeated the incumbent Democratic Carter-Mondale ticket, and Bush was later elected president in his own right in 1988.

Potential running mates

• Former Ambassador George H.W. Bush
• Former President Gerald Ford^[1]
• Senate Minority Leader Howard Baker of Tennessee^[1]
• Former Treasury Secretary William E. Simon^[1]
• New York Representative Jack Kemp^[1]
• Indiana Senator Richard Lugar^[1]
• Nevada Senator Paul Laxalt^[1]
• Michigan Representative Guy Vander Jagt^[5]

See also

• United States presidential election, 1980
• Republican Party presidential primaries, 1980
• 1980 Republican National Convention

References

1. Allen, Richard (30 July 2000). "George Herbert Walker Bush; The Accidental Vice President". New York Times. Retrieved 5 October 2015.
2. Plissner, Martin (27 December 2006). "From Ike To Jerry Ford". CBS News. Retrieved 5 October 2015.
3. Walsh, Kenneth (17 March 2011). "Reagan and Bush's Admirable Partnership". US News and World Report. Retrieved 5 October 2015.
4. Witcover, Jules (15 September 2015). "The Dynasty That Almost Wasn't". Politico. Retrieved 5 October 2015.
5. Sigelman, Lee; Wahlbeck, Paul (December 1997). "The "Veepstakes": Strategic Choice in Presidential Running Mate Selection". The American Political Science Review. 91 (4): 858. JSTOR 2952169.