One of the nation’s top political experts tells Newsmax that if Marco Rubio is named to the GOP ticket as a vice presidential candidate, Florida will be a virtual lock for the Republican Party.
Rubio, the junior U.S. senator from Florida, is a favorite of grass-roots conservatives who helped him dethrone former Florida Gov. Charlie Crist. It is also believed he could help the GOP ticket with the votes of Hispanics.
“Florida is such a complicated state,” Larry Sabato, director of the Virginia Center for Politics, tells Newsmax.TV in an exclusive interview. “Now, we haven’t mentioned vice president. Suppose Marco Rubio ends up becoming the vice presidential candidate? It will be very tough for Obama to carry Florida again.
But otherwise, Sabato adds: “If Rubio isn’t on the ticket, then I think Florida is up for grabs.”
Apart from the presidential contest, Sabato tells Newsmax that if the GOP fails to win control of the Senate in 2012, it is a virtual certainty to do so by 2014.
“The Republicans will hold on to the House, and in the Senate they have at least a 50-50 chance of taking control,” he explained. “If by some fluke they don’t get the Senate — say they lose by a vote in 2012 — [then] given the combination of seats coming up in 2014, they are certain to gain it by then.”
Editor's Note: Watch Larry Sabato's Interview Here
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