COMMENTARY | The media is fawning over Michele Bachmann's victory in the Ames Iowa Straw Poll held Saturday but does her win give her an edge on the leading Republican presidential candidate, Mitt Romney? The poll is more carnival than actual voting event and the results get swayed by showmanship and good organizing skills.
George W. Bush is the only presidential candidate to ever win the Iowa Straw Poll and go on to win the White House. Former winners include Pat Robertson and Romney with neither winning the nomination later. Romney made the calculated decision not to appear this year and received only 567 votes.
The media is doing their best to cloud the presidential race as the Republicans cut down the field of candidates. Bachmann's win was a narrow victory over another fringe candidate, Ron Paul, Yahoo! News reports. Many political pundits in Iowa this week felt Ron Paul would win a narrow victory.
Bachmann's campaign workers were diligent and they gathered their supporters with a vengeance during the straw poll process. Being a great organizer is great during an election but as we have witnessed with Barrack Obama, being a great organizer is not going to translate in the White House.
Bachmann is still the same candidate she was before the Ames Iowa Straw Poll. She is a fringe candidate, who will wield power in the decision-making process once the convention gets close in 2012. Bachmann will get votes but she will also split voters with key candidates, including new entry, Rick Perry.
Both candidates are courting the religious right, which makes up 15 percent of the Republican Party. The base of the party will come from the fiscal Republicans looking for a fiscal conservative who is going to turn Washington upside down.
The battle between Perry and Bachmann could be the battle for a place on the 2012 Republican ticket. Either one could bring plenty to the table as a vice president but neither is capable of winning the Republican presidential nomination on their own.
The win in Iowa will give Bachmann some needed financial support and confidence but in the end it means nothing. Romney is still the lead candidate and the battle continues for second place.
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