Can John McCain, born outside the 50 United

Can John McCain, born outside the 50 United States in the Panama Canal Zone, hold the office of President?

Mr. McCain is not the first person to find himself in these circumstances. The last Arizona Republican to be a presidential nominee, Barry Goldwater, faced the issue. He was born in the Arizona territory in 1909, three years before it became a state. But Goldwater did not win, and the view at the time was that since he was born in a continental territory that later became a state, he probably met the standard.

• 2008 election
• John McCain
• politics