McCain picks former beauty queen for running mate

JOHN McCAIN made a surprise choice of Sarah Palin as his running mate, adding a political unknown to the presidential ticket who could help him appeal to women voters.

Palin, 44, a self-described “hockey mom”, is a conservative first-term governor of Alaska with strong anti-abortion views, a record of reform and fiscal conservatism and an outsider’s perspective on Washington.

“She’s exactly who I need. She’s exactly who this country needs to help me fight the same old Washington politics of me first and country second,” McCain told a roaring crowd of 15,000 supporters in Dayton, Ohio.