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The crowd burst into cheers of "Sarah, Sarah, Sarah" as the Republican candidate for vice president waved alongside presidential nominee John McCain and their spouses. If Senator McCain meant to excite the conservative basis of his centre-right party by naming Sarah Palin as his running mate, his decision was vindicated by the reaction from the red, white and blue- clad crowd at a campaign stop in Fairfax, Virginia, one week after the obscure Alaska governor's landmark convention speech to introduce herself to Republicans and the nation.
Palin has raised eyebrows since being pegged as McCain's number two, with many Democrats and analysts questioning her qualifications for the job - she lacks foreign policy credentials and has been governor of her remote state for less than two years.
But the party faithful in the battleground state of Virginia voiced excitement about the ticket's combination of military and legislative experience from former Vietnam prisoner of war McCain with Palin, a fresh face who brings a new voice to US politics.
Palin has sparked interest in the ticket, and though she has yet to give interviews or campaign on her own, she has pulled in huge crowds for McCain's campaign appearances since the Republican National Convention ended last week in St Paul, Minnesota.
More than 20,000 people turned out at the Virginia rally, and many parked as much as 2 kilometres away and waited in long security lines to catch a glimpse of the duo in a small, suburban park.
"I think the country realises it can count on John McCain,"said Edward Bishop, a 47-year-old military veteran, who felt assured that Palin's values as a mother of five would help put McCain over the top with voters. "I think she guarantees victory," said Bishop, holding a sign reading "Sarah, will you marry me?" Her opposition to abortion and advocacy for stepped up energy production, as governor of an oil-rich state, were particularly popular with people at the Fairfax rally.
Among the homemade signs waved that day were: "Dems Palin comparison," "Stay at Home Moms for Palin" and "Family of seven for McCain-Palin." Women in the crowd, many with their young children in tow, said they were proud of their party for having a female candidate and were upset by suggestions that Palin's maternal responsibilities would distract her from official duties as vice president should the Republicans win the general elections on November 4.
Joan Czarra, 53, a business owner from nearby Centreville, Virginia, called such suggestions "appalling," noting other women with both powerful jobs and children. "It would never even have happened if this were a man," Czarra said.
Sherri Dreesen, 37, who came to the rally with her teenage children, said that having a woman on the ticket would not influence her vote and noted that though it was exciting to have a woman candidate she hoped that was not the deciding qualification for McCain's choice. Dreesen said she was "cautiously convinced" that Palin was a good choice for the vice presidential slot.
McCain needs these voters' enthusiasm in Virginia, a Southern state that has been reliably Republican for 40 years in presidential elections but that has become a key battleground as residents of its populous, wealthy suburbs near the nation's capital - including Fairfax - have increasingly backed Democrats.
The mid-size state could be a key battleground as polls show McCain and Democratic rival Barack Obama in a tight national race. McCain received a major boost from the Republican convention last week - greater than Obama enjoyed from the Democrats' convention one week earlier - as the presidential campaign enters its final stretch.

Copyright Deutsche Presse-Agentur, 2008

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