To the End, Kerry Remained Secretive About His Decision

Just after 6 p.m. Monday, he picked up the phone -- and talked to a worker in an airplane hangar at the Pittsburgh airport. The worker immediately set about adding a bright new decal to the side of the campaign plane.

It read: "Kerry Edwards." Below that, another line was added: "A Stronger America."

Kerry placed his call almost four hours before he notified his top aides that he had decided to ask Sen. John Edwards to join him on the Democratic presidential ticket -- and more than 13 hours before he contacted the North Carolinian himself. And Kerry's unveiling of his choice exemplified the way he conducted his search for a running mate: thoroughly, personally and, most of all, privately.

Even the advisors closest to Kerry said they did not know which way he was leaning as he solicited their opinions during the last few months.

Forced to plan a rollout for a candidate whose identity was a secret, the campaign printed as many as five different versions of placards, buttons and stickers. Others who made it onto the campaign paraphernalia included Missouri Rep. Dick Gephardt, Iowa Gov. Tom Vilsack and Florida Sen. Bob Graham. On Tuesday, at a jubilant rally in downtown Pittsburgh where Kerry announced his pick, a smattering of "Kerry Graham" signs were held aloft in the crowd, having accidentally slipped into the mix.

Friends and associates said Kerry's approach to selecting a running mate hewed to the method he applied to all major decisions. Detail-oriented and prone to playing devil's advocate, the 19-year senator and former prosecutor sifts through volumes of information before coming to a conclusion. He will often engage in spirited debates and take opposing viewpoints.

"He does what he says he's going to do, which is reach out and hear the thoughts of others, take their opinions seriously, step back and make his own decision," said Mary Beth Cahill, Kerry's campaign manager.

The way Kerry handled his vice presidential search was also influenced by his experience in 2000, when Al Gore's campaign leaked to reporters that Kerry was on the short list. In the end, Kerry learned from television news reports that Gore had chosen Sen. Joe Lieberman of Connecticut.