By Javier Manjarres
Former Massachusetts Governor Mitt Romney is the current front runner in the Republican presidential field, and it’s becoming increasingly likely that Romney will be the nominee that faces off with President Barack Obama later this year. But Romney’s road to the White House has not gone the way he would have liked, to say the least.
Yes, Governor Romney has the money, a strong campaign presence in the early primary states, and is ahead in most polls; but the Iowa Caucus was very telling as to how strong his support really is. Romney has been campaigning to be President since 2006 and his primary support never seems to rise above the mid-20’s.
The anti-Romney sentiment is very real, and it’s because conservatives, who make up the base of the Republican Party do not trust Governor Romney. While there are a bloc of conservatives that have openly stated that they would support and vote for Romney, most are looking for a strong alternative to emerge- most of Romney’s opponents have had their time at the top of the polls during the past seven months.
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In a recent Shark Tank poll conducted a week ago, readers were asked, “Which Republican Presidential candidate do you distrust the most?” The results of the poll were telling, as poll respondents overhelmingly voted that he was the most distrusted candidate with 608 votes of the 1568 votes cast.
Ron Paul finished second behind Romney with 468 votes, followed by Newt Gingrich with 243 votes, and Huntsman with 110 votes. The most trusted Republican candidate was Congresswoman Michele Bachmann, but has since dropped out of the race. Conservatives made it very clear who they favor and trusted among the candidates, by also siding with Rick Santorum who only received 70 votes, and Governor Rick Perry who received only 45 votes. View the poll here
Even though Mitt Romney won the most votes in the Iowa Caucus, he did ‘not’ win in the true sense of the term- Rick Santorum and his insurgent campaign was the clear winner at the end of the night.South Carolina’s primary election will be end game for most of the Republican candidates. Rick Perry is betting on on a South Carolina win, but from the looks of it, it may already be out of his grasp. It’s unfortunate that conservatives do not appear to be giving Perry’s candidacy a second look. Romney is atop of the recent poll conducted in the state, followed by Santorum who has skyrocketed to second, leap-frogging over Gingrich and Paul.
Will conservatives be able to unite behind a single candidate in time? Santorum is now getting the vetting that he did not get during the early months of the campaign, but we are now into the stage of the primary season where we are counting votes, not debating points. Romney has a very strong lead in New Hampshire, and a win there along with a strong showing in South Carolina would set him up nicely and could finally seal the deal for Romney as the candidate of inevitability.
