SPRINGFIELD, Ill. — Waco congressman Chet Edwards didn’t get the nod. Barack Obama picked Sen. Joe Biden as his running mate.

Just making it to the final five was a coup for the nine-term House member, who represents the district where President George W. Bush's home in Crawford is located.

Mr. Edwards is well-regarded by colleagues but has never even run statewide. He remained little known outside Texas even after House Speaker Nancy Pelosi began promoting him in June as the top prospect for vice president, citing his “extraordinary credentials.”

Mr. Edwards stumped with Mr. Obama during the Texas primary, but, unlike others on the short list, rarely appeared as a campaign surrogate after that. He got a burst of attention Friday when it became clear that he had in fact been vetted, along with far more prominent governors and senators.

Picking Mr. Edwards would have signaled that Mr. Obama was making a hard play for veterans and rural whites, and that he was willing to throw out the old political play book by betting he could win with a House member at his side – a bet no nominee for president has won in the last half-century.

Skeptics suggested that Mr. Obama decided to vet Mr. Edwards mostly to placate the powerful speaker, and because of the symbolism involved in spotlighting President Bush’s congressman, and what that says about Democrats’ combativeness this year.

Mr. Edwards serves as chairman of a panel that controls billions in spending for veterans and military construction, and long represented Fort Hood, the sprawling Army post near Killeen.

On the eve of the Biden announcement, another Democrat who has served as House speaker, Jim Wright of Fort Worth, also said Mr. Edwards would be his choice.

“Chet might be a dark horse but in my book he’s a good horse, and a dependable horse and a fast horse,” Mr. Wright said. “I like him. I trust him. I’ve observed him in action. I’ve observed him under pressure of one sort or another. He’s a man with very good judgment and very well balanced.”

Unlike a half-dozen Democratic colleagues in Texas, Mr. Edwards managed to hang onto his district after the Tom DeLay-led mid-decade redistricting of U.S. House seats. Democrats found that remarkable, given that the district voted 2-1 for President Bush, whose Crawford ranch is in the district.

Still, Mr. Edwards’ relative obscurity led many analysts to dismiss his chances as slim from the outset.

Only two sitting House members have been chosen for a national ticket in the last half-century: Democrat Walter Mondale picked Geraldine Ferraro in 1984, and Republican Barry Goldwater picked William Miller in 1964, reputedly because Mr. Miller was known to get under Lyndon Johnson’s skin. Both tickets lost.

Historians don’t blame the running mates, but say that in general, House members are too untested to add much to a ticket compared to a governor or senator.

Mr. Edwards briefly considered a bid for lieutenant governor in 1990, and allies said the fact he rose to the Obama short list could elevate his stature enough for him to run for the Senate in 2010.

Fans say he’s plenty smart and poised, and has an especially deep grounding in military issues and foreign affairs after years representing Fort Hood and advocating for military families and veterans – key issues Mr. Obama will cope with during the campaign and if he’s elected.

Mr. Edwards is 56, an Aggie with an MBA degree from Harvard, like his most famous constituent, the president.

His voting record makes him a centrist Democrat, and he has unusual clout as chairmanship of a subcommittee that controls billions in spending on veterans needs and military construction. The dozen Appropriations chairmen are known as “cardinals” because they’re so powerful on Capitol Hill.

The “pope” – Appropriations Chairman David Obey, D-Wis. – recently echoed Ms. Pelosi’s judgment that he deserved serious consideration for vice president, calling Mr. Edwards “an incredibly nice, decent human being” who is at the same time “very, very tough minded,” serious and studious – a combination that makes him one of the five or 10 best lawmakers he knows in either party.

But whether he had the attributes Mr. Obama sought is another matter.