As we get ready to start 2012, the presidential campaign is beginning to heat up. The election, to be held on November 17, 2012, will be a crucial one for a Democratic Party trying to maintain power and a Republican Party attempting to wrestle back political dominance. As the candidate front-runners begin to emerge, the politics surrounding the election naturally comes to involve more direct attacks on candidates’ opponents.
Barack Obama, the current President of the United States, has come out to assert that he will seek re-election. There are several other Democratic candidates who have not yet withdrawn their names from consideration, such as Darcy Richardson and Randall Terry. By the time of the first Democratic Primary, however, it is believed that there will be little competition for Obama. Thus, barring any unusual circumstances, Obama will be the presidential candidate for the Democratic Party.
The Republican candidate for the 2012 election is still anyone’s guess, however. A number of political players have declared their candidacy. Michele Bachmann, a congresswoman from Minnesota, has some early backing but seems to have lost favor with most Republicans due to several verbal missteps. Newt Gingrich, an old-hand at politics, still is experiencing some significant support. Gingrich is the former Speaker of the House of Representatives, and due to his history with the Republican Party, many Republicans feel Gingrich has a strong chance to upend the President. Rick Perry, the current governor of Texas, also has a strong backing due to his political influence. So far, however, Perry’s performance in the debates has set him back just a bit.
The current Republican front-runner for the 2012 election is Mitt Romney. Romney is a former governor of Massachusetts. He ran for the Republican nomination in the 2008 campaign, but eventually lost the nomination to John McCain. McCain went on to lose the election to Obama. Romney is an articulate politician and has the charisma to carry the Republican nomination. Some Republicans are unsure of Romney, however, because his politics have not always been consistent with the party line. For example, his wide-spread health care reforms enacted while he was governor of Massachusetts have been likened to some of the changes Obama made after his election.
The campaign this year will likely focus on several political and social issues. Republicans will force Obama to defend the lack of positive gains in the economy over the past four years, and Obama will likely counter by describing the framework he has put in place, and the potential it has in the future to improve the economic landscape. The war in Afghanistan and other pressing foreign policy issues will also be center stage for portions of the campaign. And social issues, like gay rights and abortion rights, will certainly be the cause of some heated political debates.
The task facing the Republicans in the upcoming election is finding a candidate who is strong enough to challenge the incumbent Obama. While it doesn’t seem the country is strongly in favor of Obama, many are also not overly excited about the Republican field of candidates. As the campaign progresses, it will be interesting to see which Republican candidate can pull ahead of the pack, and push Obama come election time.