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Local congressman ventures guess in VP-stakes

Guessing who Republican presidential nominee Mitt Romney might pick to be his running mate is one of the most popular parlor games among political wonks at the moment.

While many politicians won't venture to guess who the GOP vice presidential nominee will be, one central New York office holder was willing to make a prediction.

Rep. Richard Hanna (R-NY) predicts Romney’s running mate will be a senator from Ohio.

While campaigning in central New York Wednesday, Hanna said Senator Rob Portman is not necessarily his preference, just his best guess. The congressman would not say who his choice for vice president would be.

"I mean, if somebody asked me, I would say Portman. I met him. He seems like a very competent, thoughtful guy.  But, you know, nobody ever said that the vice president made a big difference in the outcome of a race. Although maybe you’d argue that in the outcome of the last race...." Hanna said with a laugh.

Portman is a first-term senator from Ohio. Before that, he represented the Cincinnati area in Congress and then was President George W. Bush’s budget director.

Romney is expected to make his running mate selection before the Republican convention, which is being held August 27-30.

While many prominent, and not-so-known Republicans have been mentioned as potential Romney running mates, some of the most commonly talked about other names include former Minnesota Governor Tim Pawlenty, Florida Senator Marco Rubio, as well as Louisiana Governor Bobby Jindal and Wisconsin Representative Paul Ryan.