Rick Santorum suspended his presidential election Tuesday, effectively giving the republican presidential nomination to Mitt Romney. Newt Gingrich and Ron Paul remain in the race, but neither are serious competitors.
Since day one of the election season, Romney has been criticized by both his fellow Republicans and by Democratic rivals — he’s too liberal, too Mormon, too rich and falters on the key issues.
Now, in an effort to redeem himself and his struggling party, Romney will choose a vice presidential nominee.
Political analysts spent the remainder of last week speculating what choice the former governor will make.
There are many issues that will play into Romney’s decision in a vice presidential candidate. A recent Washington Post/ABC News poll showed President Obama has a 19-point lead over Romney among women voters. Romney also faces opposition from Hispanic voters.
“He also faces potentially major problems among Hispanics because of his positions on immigration and the harsh language he used to describe them during the GOP debates,” wrote Dan Balz of The Washington Post.
Romney will try to attract these key demographics when choosing his running mate. The most talked about vice presidential nominees, though, fail to attract those demographics, and no republicans serve as a good counterpart to Romney.
Marco Rubio, a senator from Florida, is among the favored running mates. Many say that Rubio, a Latino, would attract the much-needed demographic. But if anything, he would do the exact opposite.
Choosing Rubio “guarantees lengthy and uncomfortable discussions about why Romney has positioned himself so far right on Latino issues. Not the conversation Mitt wants to have,” Newsweek columnist Paul Regala wrote.
New Mexico Gov. Susana Martinez is also a potential vice presidential candidate for Romney. Martinez, also Hispanic, would attract both the Latino and the women’s vote, some say. This presents an interesting question, though. Does the GOP have any chance attracting women voters, especially when it continually disregards the pro-choice group, which is generally dominated by woman? Are women more likely to vote for a fellow woman — even if their beliefs are incompatible?
Granted, Martinez would attract some women, but it’s unlikely she will attract enough women to close the gap between Romney and Obama. Additionally, as a Latina, Martinez runs the same risk to Romney as Rubio. Scratch her off the list, too.
Arizona Senator John Kyl has also attracted the attention of political analysts. Kyl shows the most potential of all the potential running mates. He has experience, is somewhat attractive for a 70-year-old male and knows foreign policy. He is not a newcomer to the political game and wouldn’t blow up in the GOP’s face (cough — Sarah Palin).
The problem with Kyl, though, is that he’s too average. He does little to attract voters and in some ways could be seen as a mirror image to Romney.
In short, Romney has no suitable options. Romney needs someone who will spark his campaign, but those candidates are too risky or would spotlight key divergences, such as Latino and women’s issues. Those who provide experience and reliability fail to spark interest and votes.
It was only a matter of time before the GOP reached an impasse.
Reach the columnist at eeeaton@asu.edu.
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