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Home > Window on Washington > Archives > 2008 > July > 28 > Entry

McCain-Hutchison would be oldest ticket

By Ken Herman | Monday, July 28, 2008, 08:34 AM

If John McCain, 72, picks a running mate 63 or older, the GOP ticket would become the oldest in the history of the two major parties.

Texas Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchison, 65, would get him there.

And McCain could become part of the youngest ticket ever by picking somebody under age four.

On the Democratic side, Barack Obama, 47, also is barred by law (presidents and veeps have to be at least 35) from becoming part of the youngest ticket ever. He’d have to pick somebody under 29 to break that record.

Obama could be part of the oldest ticket ever by picking somebody over 87.

For historical stats about oldest tickets, click continue reading.

Here are the age extremes for presidential tickets for the current two major parties (dating back to 1856 for the GOP and 1828 for the Democrats):

Oldest ticket ever: 134. Democrats Harry Truman, 64, and running mate Alben Barkley, who was 22 days shy of 71 when they won the 1948 election. Truman-Barkley had eight months over the 1996 GOP ticket of Bob Dole, 73, and Jack Kemp, 61.

Youngest ticket ever (a record that will be tough to beat): 76. The 1864 Democratic team of George McClellan and George H. Pendleton. On Election Day, McClellan was a month short of 38. Pendleton was 39. They lost to Abraham Lincoln and Andrew Johnson, with a combined age of 111.

The youngest ever winning ticket was Democrats Bill Clinton and Al Gore in 1992, with a combined age of 90.

Oldest candidate ever on a major party ticket: At 72, McCain doesn’t come close. In 1904, when the Democrats put Alton Parker atop their ticket, the No. 2 man was Henry Gassaway Davis, who was eight days short of 81 on Election Day. Parker, 52, and Davis lost to Republicans Teddy Roosevelt and Charles Fairbanks, with a combined age of 98.

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