by Javier Manjarres

As the Republican Presidential field begins to tighten and the pace in which these campaigns progress quickens now that early primary states like Florida and South Carolina have moved up their primary dates, it’s fair to assume that the candidates will begin to throw everything -including the kitchen sink- at one another.  As in all campaigns, the spouses of  the Presidential candidates have played a major role and have been used to ‘soften’ candidates to voters of all factions within a political party.

The 2012 Presidential cycle is in full-swing, and the wives of Republican presidential hopefuls Mitt Romney and Rick Perry are already being thrust onto the campaign trail, as both ladies have already chimed in on the race. Following his recent straw poll success at the CPAC-FL and National  Federated of Republican Women’s annual meeting, businessman Herman Cain has jumped into the front runner between Romney and Perry. While Cain has said that his wife of 43 years Gloria Cain is not the type of woman that would get as involved in a campaign as past spouses have, and many are now speculating  that if the campaign tightens-which it  is expected to do so-  that Mrs. Cain could be a secret weapon of sorts that could propel Herman Cain over the primary finish line.

 But according to Karen Nussle, the figurative spouse-piece could actually hurt the candidate.

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 Pollsters will tell you that a political spouse can not actually improve a candidate’s chances of winning, but she or he can hurt them. From Cindy McCain to Teresa Heinz Kerry to Todd Palin, our recent political history is riddled with examples of spouses who either were too mysterious or too ―risky for the fickle American electorate. Read more about Ann Romney and Anita Perry here: Ripple Communications

So how soon will it be  until Herman Cain casts his wife Gloria into the spotlight?  Because Mrs. Cain is so reserved and Mr.Cain has been reluctant to exploit her thus far, politicos believe  that this could actually bode well for Cain since most voters are tired of the same ol’ retail politicking where politicos shamelessly feature their spouses and families to try to get that extra edge in order to win a race.