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At this point in the contest, Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump have almost certainly begun thinking about potential running mates. Vice presidents are important, in part, for being the second person in the line of succession. But historically, campaigns have also considered electoral math with their VP pick.

In short, it is another person who can appeal to certain demographics where the presidential nominee falls short.

For example, Trump has polled poorly among women, so having a woman on his ticket might help. Meanwhile, Clinton needs Hispanics to turn out in swing states, like Florida and Nevada, and relying on Trump's anti-immigration platform might not be enough. All the while, both candidates are almost 70 years old, so it's quite likely they will choose a younger running mate.

Do you want a Republican woman with little establishment experience? A Democrat from a swing state who's had a long tenure in the Senate?

Clinton and Trump are likely mulling over these factors. And to help, we made them (and you!) a tool to create a shortlist of vice presidential nominees.

It starts with about 1,000 names. It includes every current and former member of Congress, every current and recent governor, and every Cabinet member from the past two administrations. This covers basically everyone who could be vice president.

Since 1960, only one nominee wouldn't qualify under these criteria, and that's Sarge Shriver who in 1972 was George McGovern's running mate and came in after serving as US ambassador to France and as the first director of the Office of Economic Opportunity.

In addition, only people under 70 are included. That's because the oldest VP nominee since 1960 was Joe Biden, and he was 65 when elected.

So with these things in mind: Do you want a Republican woman with little establishment experience? A Democrat from a swing state who's had a long tenure in the Senate? Think about what the candidates need to shore up their tickets, and find out who is in that universe of people. Obviously, there are many considerations, but this helps you get to a shortlist — or at least a medium one.

You can play around with the tool here — and read below for a few historical tips on how campaigns typically make their vice presidential pick.

The vice presidential shortlist generator

Filter this list to get a shortlist of people who could be vice president.