GOP candidates for the 2012 presidential election were very busy this week drumming up supporters and priming their campaigns for Thursday’s nationally televised debate, to be followed by a much-anticipated straw poll this Saturday in Ames, Iowa.
A group of eight candidates will participate in a live televised debate at Iowa State University. Of those, six will go on to compete in the first straw poll of the season. The poll is the biggest of its kind on the campaign trail, and it is seen as an early gauge of the popularity and success of a candidate’s campaign.
The field’s current front-runner, former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney, has chosen not to compete in the straw poll. It will, nonetheless, list all nine registered candidates on the ballot.
Romney and Congresswoman Michele Bachmann are the two to beat.
Both will likely focus during the debate on their criticism of the president, while the other contenders will likely try to knock the front-runners down on issues of the economy and conservative social values.
Bachmann has enjoyed early polling success since catapulting to the top after doing well, and announcing her run for presidency during the last televised debate in June.
Former Minnesota Gov. Tim Pawlenty will be seeking to revive his chances of gaining the nomination. His campaign needs cash, and without a strong finish in Iowa, he may be forced to fold, analysts say.
Pawlenty, in his personal welcome message online and at tour stops, presents himself as a straightforward, low-key talker who shuns “fancy speeches.” He will have been on tour in Iowa for eight days, visiting 26 cities, before landing at the straw poll.
Former Utah governor and ambassador to China under Obama, Jon Huntsman, a late entry to the field, will participate in his first national debate, but he will not take part in the Saturday poll. His focus is on the upcoming straw poll in New Hampshire, where he plans to challenge Romney.
Presidential campaign veteran, Texan congressional representative Dr. Ron Paul, a libertarian committed to commodity-backed currency, is predicted to finish in first or second place in the straw poll.
Paul has a strong base of supporters there, and has been polling well in the state. Paul gets third pick among registered candidates in the South and in the West, according to recent Gallup polling.
A Rasmussen Reports poll of Iowa GOP caucus goers released Monday showed Bachmann (22 percent), Paul (16 percent), and Pawlenty (11 percent) as the top three contenders for Iowa.
Former House Speaker Newt Gingrich, benefiting from good name recognition among the Republican base, comes in fourth or fifth against announced contenders in all regions of the country in Gallup polling. He will participate in both Iowa contests, despite well-publicized campaign organizational challenges with fundraising, and mass defections of his staff.
Former Godfather’s Pizza CEO Herman Cain will wrap up his Common Sense Solutions Tour at Ames on Saturday. Cain had a good start to his campaign, with a strong showing in a South Carolina debate early in the race.
Rick Santorum, a former Pennsylvania senator, is planning to put on a party at Ames, perhaps with the hope of bolstering his poor name recognition among voters. He is on a three-week tour throughout the state with his wife and seven children.
In Ames he will host a summer dance party with Buddy Holly’s famed band “The Crickets,” and former Arkansas governor and Republican presidential hopeful Mike Huckabee. He is offering Iowa pork burgers to guests for lunch and samples of peach jam, picked from his family’s trees and made into jam by his children.
Bachmann, a native of Iowa with five children and 23 foster children, has arranged for Randy Travis to headline an impressive lineup of popular country music performers. They include Tim Rushlow, Richie McDonald, and Charles Billingsley.
Many of the candidates are offering free tickets and transportation to the straw poll, which is expected to draw 10,000 to 13,000 people. The Cain campaign reported that it will pay for nine buses filled with supporters to attend the day’s festivities.
Those who wish to go on their own can purchase tickets for $30 dollars from the Republican Party of Iowa, which holds the event as a fundraiser.
Although the straw poll results have no legal standing, they are a first indicator of strength of a campaign. Close to a thousand members of the media are expected to attend. Polling will take place throughout the day, and end at 4 p.m.
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