2012 Without Mitt Romney

Had former Massachusetts Governor Mitt Romney been the Republican nominee in 2008 and lost to the Democratic nominee in the November Election, how do you think the 2012 Republican Party Presidential Primaries have gone without him? I could see the weaker candidates of OTL such as former Minnesota Governor Tim Pawlenty and former Utah Governor Jon Huntsman receiving an establishment boost. Or is Newt Gingrich that establishment candidate? Could Herman Cain and Rick Perry stay in the race longer and potentially win states?
 
Rick Perry and Tim Pawlenty would definitely be stronger contenders. The former would still need to avoid gaffes and the latter would likely benefit from the money that went to Romney iOTL.
 
Would Rick Santorum not be a head runner? In 2012, Santorum suspended his campaign following the hospitalization of his three-year-old daughter Isabella, as well as a strong showing by front runner Mitt Romney in primaries and polls.

Could him being a front runner alter his daughter's hospitalization? Santorum received nine delegate votes at the convention, coming in third behind Romney and Ron Paul.

Would Obama and Biden be able to compete with younger senators Rick Santorum and Marco Rubio
 
Pawlenty, Perry, and maybe even Huntsman fair stronger than OTL. Huckabee could also throw his hat in the race as well.
 
Between a Romney-- the very image of the "establishment"-- loss and the subsequent rise of the Tea Party, I think the 2012 cycle would be favourable to more socially conservative, less "elite" candidates like Perry, Santorum and maybe Huckabee; while bland moderate establishmentarians like Huntsman or Pawlenty would be just as inert. Perry's the likely frontrunner.

Of course, the 2012 election fought on social issues would not go well for the Republicans...
 
I see Santorium getting the nomination and losing in a landslide. I see the establishment vote divided between Huntsman, Pawlenty and Jeb Bush.
 
I see Santorium getting the nomination and losing in a landslide. I see the establishment vote divided between Huntsman, Pawlenty and Jeb Bush.

Jeb wouldn't run just four years after his very unpopular brother left office. I think part of the reason Obama got re elected was because the memory of Dubya was still too fresh for enough of the electorate. Even if Romney didn't run, Jeb would (even if begrudgingly) sit it out.
 
Would Rick Santorum not be a head runner? In 2012, Santorum suspended his campaign following the hospitalization of his three-year-old daughter Isabella, as well as a strong showing by front runner Mitt Romney in primaries and polls.

Could him being a front runner alter his daughter's hospitalization? Santorum received nine delegate votes at the convention, coming in third behind Romney and Ron Paul.

Would Obama and Biden be able to compete with younger senators Rick Santorum and Marco Rubio
I can see him staying in the race even with his daughter's hospitalization, as long as he wins Illinois, Wisconsin, and Pennsylvania and is in the lead. Barack Obama and Joe Biden certainly would be able to compete with Rick Santorum and Marco Rubio; but my question is, would Santorum select Rubio as his vice presidential nominee?
 

I can see him staying in the race even with his daughter's hospitalization, as long as he wins Illinois, Wisconsin, and Pennsylvania and is in the lead. Barack Obama and Joe Biden certainly would be able to compete with Rick Santorum and Marco Rubio; but my question is, would Santorum select Rubio as his vice presidential nominee?

I kind of wonder that myself, wasn't Rubio still seen as Conservative in 2012? If that's the case there's no ideological balance and with someone like Rick Santorum, ideological balance is desperately needed.
 
I could see Huckabee maybe getting the nomination,or Perry if he can avoid his gaffes.

Pawlenty might be a good compromise candidate.

Santorum seems too conservative at this point imo,but he did make a pretty strong showing I will admit..

I kind of wonder that myself, wasn't Rubio still seen as Conservative in 2012? If that's the case there's no ideological balance and with someone like Rick Santorum, ideological balance is desperately needed.

Personally,I think Santorum would choose someone moderate to balance his ticket with although its Santorum so he might not. Either way,I don't think Rubio would be too heavily considered as he is relatively new to the Senate and all.
 
I could see Huckabee maybe getting the nomination,or Perry if he can avoid his gaffes.

Pawlenty might be a good compromise candidate.

Santorum seems too conservative at this point imo,but he did make a pretty strong showing I will admit..



Personally,I think Santorum would choose someone moderate to balance his ticket with although its Santorum so he might not. Either way,I don't think Rubio would be too heavily considered as he is relatively new to the Senate and all.

Personally, I think Huckabee, if he runs would be the nominee as the establishment vote would split between Pawlenty and Huntsman, if Huckleberry doesn't run, Perry gets it if he avoids his gaffes. If he still gaffes and if the establishment doesn't rally behind Huntsman or T-Paw, while I agree with you that Santorum is too conservative, I think he or Gingrich would win the nomination.

In either case a 2012 without Romney means barring a major f*ck up on Obama's part, Obama wins 2012 in a crushing landslide.
 
Santorum only won anything because he was the very last of the anti-Romneys which the right of the party attached themselves to in an attempt to stop Romney. He was their last choice, after Michele Bachmann, Rick Perry, Herman Cain, and Newt Gingrich. The only way he'd rise to prominence would be if there was another train of Tea Party challenges to whoever the replacement for Romney would be, and all of the challengers melted down like in OTL allowing Santorum to be the final challenger. And even then, he'd lose to the establishment. Santorum wouldn't be the nominee.
 
Santorum only won anything because he was the very last of the anti-Romneys which the right of the party attached themselves to in an attempt to stop Romney. He was their last choice, after Michele Bachmann, Rick Perry, Herman Cain, and Newt Gingrich. The only way he'd rise to prominence would be if there was another train of Tea Party challenges to whoever the replacement for Romney would be, and all of the challengers melted down like in OTL allowing Santorum to be the final challenger. And even then, he'd lose to the establishment. Santorum wouldn't be the nominee.

I agree with this, however, in my opinion, in a Romney less 2012 Primary anything is possible.
 
Santorum only won anything because he was the very last of the anti-Romneys which the right of the party attached themselves to in an attempt to stop Romney. He was their last choice, after Michele Bachmann, Rick Perry, Herman Cain, and Newt Gingrich. The only way he'd rise to prominence would be if there was another train of Tea Party challenges to whoever the replacement for Romney would be, and all of the challengers melted down like in OTL allowing Santorum to be the final challenger. And even then, he'd lose to the establishment. Santorum wouldn't be the nominee.

Completely agreed. The only real base Santorum had was people who hated Romney, and he only even got that after Bachmann, Perry, Cain, and Gingrich imploded one after the other. I mean, look at how well his 2016 campaign went.

Anyway, without Romney, I wonder if Chris Christie might enter the race. He was heavily pressured to IOTL (around September 2011) and with the establishment candidates in this scenario most likely floundering, I could see him reconsidering.
 
Anyway, without Romney, I wonder if Chris Christie might enter the race. He was heavily pressured to IOTL (around September 2011) and with the establishment candidates in this scenario most likely floundering, I could see him reconsidering.
But Christie hadnt been governor long enough and *cough* bridgegate was beginning.
 
But Christie hadnt been governor long enough and *cough* bridgegate was beginning.

I agree Christie was only governor for less than 2 years in 2012, he's a no go, and I don't know if it was Bridgegate, but some skeletons were in Christie's closet, as he was on Romney short list for VP and after being vetted was turned down because of them.
 
But Christie hadnt been governor long enough and *cough* bridgegate was beginning.

I agree Christie was only governor for less than 2 years in 2012, he's a no go, and I don't know if it was Bridgegate, but some skeletons were in Christie's closet, as he was on Romney short list for VP and after being vetted was turned down because of them.

Christie's inexperience will hurt a bit, I'll admit.

But as for Bridgegate, that didn't even happen till 2013, and from what that I've read the reason he didn't become Romney's running mate is because he would've had to resign as Governor, which he was against. At this point he hadn't really had any scandals, either; the only really controversial aspect about him in 2012 was his blunt style, but OTL has proven that isn't really an issue.
 
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