Wednesday, May 6, 2015

GOP 2016 diversity on display in campaign rollouts



With Ben Carson and Carly Fiorina officially joining the GOP presidential race Monday, the Republican field includes two Latinos, an African-American and a woman. And depending on Bobby Jindal's next move, an Indian-American -- a term he's not fond of -- could also be in the mix.

2016 is shaping up to be a year of historic diversity for Republicans, setting the party apart from the all white line-up that's emerging on the Democratic side. That distinction is important for Republicans as some in the party try to make inroads with minorities. But the biggest question is whether a diverse slate of candidates will actually help the GOP overcome its demographic problem, which has contributed to losses at the presidential level in two successive elections.

"With more diversity, comes diverse attention and with diverse attention comes diverse voters," said Ron Bonjean, a GOP strategist. "It's not going to change the world, but it's helpful. It's a chip away strategy, every percentage counts. It's not a planned out strategy, but it's one that Republicans should take advantage of."





The RealClearPolitics average of poll measures 14 candidates in the Republican race. Fiorina is 14th, with 1.0 percent of the vote. Carson is eighth, with 4.8 percent. Neither seems set to scare the leaders anytime soon.

But both bring something to the race; if nothing else, the Carson and Fiorina rollouts Monday showed the sprawling range of the Republican campaign. And while each GOP candidate is different from each other, perhaps the greatest contrast of all is between Republican diversity and the virtually single-candidate race on the other side.









at Labels: , , , , , , , , ,