Local response appears favorable to presidential candidate Sen. Barack Obama’s Friday announcement that fellow U.S. Sen. Joe Biden will be his running mate.

“I don’t think he could have picked a better running mate,” said Jim Clayton, an Austin resident and veteran.

Biden, of Delaware, emerged as the favored vice presidential pick that night, as other contenders, including former presidential candidate Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton, were weeded away.

“No, I was not surprised,” state Rep. Jeanne Poppe, DFL-Austin, said of Obama’s expected pick. “I think it fits with what the campaign is all about.”

U.S. Rep. Tim Walz, D-Minn., who was in town Monday to trumpet a new veteran’s bill, said as much.

“People know that we need a change,” he said, adding, “I think it makes good sense to have someone who knows the system.”

Biden has served 35 years in Congress as a Democrat. He ran for president twice.

The Democratic Convention kicked off yesterday in Denver, Colo. and will be the forum where Obama and Biden are expected to seal the DFL presidential ticket.

The Republican Convention occurs one week later, Sept. 1-4, in St. Paul. Arizona Sen. John McCain will likely snag the GOP nomination.

He has not announced a running mate, though Minnesota Gov. Tim Pawlenty has been a rumored candidate.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.