 2012 U.S. presidential election | |
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| Republican Party | |
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The start of the 2012 Republican race for president was shaped by the 13 presidential debates of 2011 beginning on May 5. Gary Johnson and Buddy Roemer, both former Governors, were left out of most of the debates, leading to complaints of bias.[1] On December 28, 2011, Johnson withdrew to seek the Libertarian Party nomination and on February 23, 2012, Roemer withdrew to seek the Reform Party and the Americans Elect nomination.
Two candidates from the 2008 presidential primaries, Mitt Romney and Ron Paul, ran again in the 2012 primary campaign. Mitt Romney was an early frontrunner, and he maintained a careful, strategic campaign that centered on being an establishment candidate. In the summer of 2011 he had a lead in polls with the support of much of the Republican electorate.[2] However, his lead over the Republican field was precarious, owing to the entry of new candidates who drew considerable media attention. First congresswoman Michele Bachmann of Minnesota started her campaign in June and surged in the polls after winning the Ames Straw Poll in August, but she lost some of the momentum to Texas Governor Rick Perry shortly after he was drafted by strong national Republican support. He performed strongly in polls, immediately becoming a serious contender.[3] But he lost the momentum following a poor performances in the September debates. As the third opponent to Romney's lead Herman Cain surged after the sixth debate on September 22. In November Cain's viability as a candidate was seriously jeopardized after several allegations of sexual harassment surfaced in the media, and he suspended his campaign on December 3, 2011, despite his unyielding denials of any misconduct.
In November as Herman Cain's campaign was stumbling former Speaker of the House Newt Gingrich asserted himself as the fourth leading opponent to Romney.[4] It was a comeback for Gingrich after his campaign had suffered under serious staff problems just weeks after he had entered the race in May.[5] But in the few weeks before the Iowa caucus, Gingrich's lead quickly began to evaporate. Iowans were bombarded with over $4.4 million in negative advertising on Gingrich from super PACs sympathetic to Mitt Romney and others.[6][7] So on the eve of the Iowa Caucus, the first contest, there was no clear and strong frontrunner.
- ^ Weigel, David (October 10, 2011). "The Gary Johnson Rule, Remixed". Slate. Retrieved October 11, 2011.
- ^ Jensen, Tom (June 23, 2011). "Romney leads the way in Florida". Public Policy Polling. Retrieved August 19, 2011.
- ^ "GOP Primary: Perry 29%, Romney 18%, Bachmann 13%". Rasmussen Reports. August 16, 2011. Retrieved September 14, 2011.
- ^ Khan, Naureen (November 5, 2011). "Gingrich Making the Right Moves in Primary States". National Journal. Archived from the original on 2011-11-05. Retrieved November 14, 2011.
- ^ Zeleny, Jeff; Gabriel, Trip (June 10, 2011). "Gingrich's Future in Question After Aides Quit en Masse". The New York Times. Retrieved 2022-08-31.
- ^ Shear, Michael D.; Peters, Jeremy W. (2011-12-19). "In Murky Republican Contest, the Clearest Target Is Gingrich". The New York Times.
- ^ Fouhy, Beth (2011-12-10). "Pro-Romney ad is frontal attack on rival Gingrich". Boston.com. Retrieved 2011-12-28.
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