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GERALDINE FERRARO IS CHOSEN BY MONDALE AS RUNNING MATE, FIRST WOMEN ON MAJOR TICKET

GERALDINE FERRARO IS CHOSEN BY MONDALE AS RUNNING MATE, FIRST WOMEN ON MAJOR TICKET
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July 13, 1984, Section A, Page 1Buy Reprints
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Remarks by candidates, page A8.

ST. PAUL, July 12 - Walter F. Mondale today named Representative Geraldine A. Ferraro of Queens as his running mate, the first woman selected to run for Vice President on a major party ticket.

Mr. Mondale, the probable Democratic Presidential nominee, announced his historic step before an ebullient crowd at the State Capitol. He introduced Mrs. Ferraro by saying: ''I looked for the best Vice President and I found her in Gerry Ferraro.''

''This is an exciting choice,'' he said, with Mrs. Ferraro by his side.

She Breaks Into a Grin

The 48-year-old former teacher and assistant prosecutor from Queens broke into a wide grin as Mr. Mondale said, ''I'm delighted to announce that I will ask the Democratic convention'' to ratify her.

Mr. Mondale said the decision to choose a woman was a ''difficult'' one, but added: ''Gerry has excelled in everything she's tried, from law school at night to being a tough prosecutor to winning a difficult election, to winning positions of leadership and respect in the Congress.''

Mr. Mondale said her political rise was ''really the story of a classic American dream.''

He Cites the Constitution

''History speaks to us today,'' Mr. Mondale told the throng of state officials, supporters and journalists. ''Our founders said in the Constitution, 'We the people' - not just the rich, or men, or white, but all of us.''

''Our message,'' Mr. Mondale went on, ''is that America is for everyone who works hard and contributes to our blessed country.''

Mrs. Ferraro, who was first elected to Congress in 1978, has received the endorsements for the Vice Presidency of Thomas P. O'Neill Jr., the Speaker of the House, Governor Cuomo of New York and a wide range of Democrats as well as feminists.

Democratic advisers to Mr. Mondale say that her selection was clearly a signal that Mr. Mondale wanted to focus, in part, on gathering support from blue-collar and trade union voters in such industrial states as New York, Pennsylvania, Illinois and Ohio.

Increase in Energy Seen

''She's a woman, she's ethnic, she's Catholic,'' said one adviser to Mr. Mondale. ''We have broken the barrier. She will energize, not just women, but a lot of men who have fallen away from the Democrats.''

Another adviser to Mr. Mondale said that although Mrs. Ferraro had scant foreign policy and national security experience, unlike Vice President Bush, the Queens Democrat ''brings new chemistry, new passion, new unpredictability into the mix.''

In her remarks today, an obviously moved Mrs. Ferraro spoke of her Italian immigrant family's love for the United States, the concerns of her constituents in Queens and her selection by Mr. Mondale.

She began by saying: ''Thank you, Vice President Mondale. Vice President - it has such a nice ring to it.'' She went on:

''When Fritz Mondale asked me to be his running mate he sent a powerful signal about the direction he wants to lead our country.'' American history is about doors being open, doors of opportunity for everyone no matter who you are, as long as you 're willing to earn it.''

''There's an electricity in the air, an excitement, a sense of new possibilities and of pride,'' Mrs. Ferraro told the enthusiastic audience moments later.

Mr. Mondale's aides said the former Vice President decided shortly before 6 P.M. Wednesday to choose Mrs. Ferraro.

''Here goes,'' Mr. Mondale reportedly said as he phoned Mrs. Ferraro in San Francisco, where the Democratic convention starts Monday. With Peter Kyros, a Mondale aide, she later boarded a private jet at Oakland Airport for the late-night flight to the Twin Cities.

Mr. Mondale's announcement came at noon here today before a brooding portrait of Abraham Lincoln. It was made in the same chamber where Mr. Mondale began his political career 23 years ago and where he started his Presidential drive in February 1983. Mr. Mondale formerly served as Minnesota Attorney General and as a United States Senator before Jimmy Carter chose him for Vice President in 1976. Plan Hometown Visit

Mr. Mondale and Mrs. Ferraro departed from the Mondale home in North Oaks for a family luncheon after today's announcement. They were scheduled to travel on Friday to Elmore, Minn., where Mr. Mondale grew up, to make their first joint campaign appearance.

In the last three weeks Mr. Mondale interviewed seven prospective candidates and made it plain that he was seriously considering a break in precedent and selecting a woman or a member of a minority group instead of a white man.

Ranking aides to Mr. Mondale indicated last week that Mayor Dianne Feinstein of San Francisco had outdistanced Mrs. Ferraro in her personal interview with Mr. Mondale, as well as in her press comments afterward. Some aides said Mrs. Ferraro had proved somewhat disappointing, a comment that angered Mr. Mondale. Factors in Choice Listed

What apparently swayed the Minnesotan, Democratic officials said, was Mrs. Ferraro's experience in Congress, the considerable support for her among members of the party leadership and, perhaps most important, her appeal to blue-collar voters coupled with her traditional liberal views, which seem to coincide with Mr. Mondale's.

Mrs. Ferraro had emerged in recent weeks as the strong favorite among feminists, especially officials of the National Organization for Women. But Democratic advisers to Mr. Mondale said the decision in favor of Mrs. Ferraro was based heavily on the notion that her political strength would enhance Mr. Mondale's support in predominantly white, blue-collar and ethnic areas.

Mrs. Ferraro underscored today her beliefs in strong family and religious values. Their Daughter With Them

''This choice says a lot about him, about where the country has come and about where we want to lead it,'' said Mrs. Ferraro, who was accompanied here by her husband, John Zaccaro, a real estate developer, and one of her three children, Laura, 18.

''Fritz called my road here the classic American dream,'' she said. ''He's right.''

Mrs. Ferraro, who taught elementary school in Queens while attending Fordham Law School at night, noted that her father came from Marcianise, a small town in Italy.

''Like millions of other immigrants he loved our country passionately but what he loved most about it was that in America anything is possible if you work for it,'' she said.

As Mr. Mondale listened intently, she said: ''I grew up among working people, straightforward solid Americans trying to make ends meet, trying to bring up their families and leave their country a little bit better off than when they moved here and found it. Those are my values, too.

''I have a strong, loving family. And our neighborhood and our faith are important parts of our lives. So is our work.''

'Big Stake' for New Yorkers

She added that the people of New York have a ''big stake'' in the Presidential election, saying that voters were ''terrified'' about possible changes in the Medicare system, cuts in Social Security, college costs and unemployment.

''And I know their fears about the future,'' she said. ''They love America. They support a strong, sensible defense but they want nothing to do with reckless adventures in Latin America. And they want to get some talks going to stop this arms race before it destroys us all.''

Mrs. Ferraro said that her friend, Representative Charles B. Rangel, Democrat of Manhattan, phoned her earlier and said, ''Gerry, my heart is full.''

Mrs. Ferraro said quietly, ''So is mine.''

A version of this article appears in print on  , Section A, Page 1 of the National edition with the headline: GERALDINE FERRARO IS CHOSEN BY MONDALE AS RUNNING MATE, FIRST WOMEN ON MAJOR TICKET. Order Reprints | Today’s Paper | Subscribe

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