COMMENTARY| Any hope that the Republican party's presidential race has of presenting an alternative to front runner Mitt Romney is fading fast.
Herman Cain, the Godfather Pizza CEO turned contender for the GOP presidential nomination, was forced to bow out of the race, Saturday, in light of allegations that he not only sexually harassed several women during the 1990s, but also carried on a 13-year affair with Atlanta businesswoman Ginger White, 46. Cain denied the earlier charges of sexual harrasment, but when his longtime friend,White, produced cell phone records proving they had a far more than platonic relationship, his campaign asked that the media not look into his "private sexual life."
After news that there was evidence of marital infidelity broke earlier this week, the Associated Press reported that Cain was "reassessing" his bid for the 2012 presidential election. There was much speculation as to how the news of potential sexual misconduct would affect Cain's campaign, with many believing it would be the end of his bid for the White House. Now that his reassessment of his candidacy has officially led to a suspension of his campaign; the large amount of support he accumulated will be divided, with Romney and Newt Gingrich likely being the primary beneficiaries of his collapse.
The Associated Press reports that Cain supporters were split between Romney and Gingrich for their second choice before his sex scandal and how they are redistributed will be a key factor in the Republican race.
Cain's decline has already sent many of his supporters to Gingrich's camp as the former House Speaker is currently the only candidate with the voter support to challenge Romney's long tenure as the party's presidential front runner, but the rest of the GOP field is far from appetizing.
The loss of their "nice guy" candidate comes just after Minnesota congresswoman, Michele Bachmann, furthered her reputation for factual incorrectness and speaking faux pas with her Wednesday declaration that gay men and lesbians should be allowed to marry so long as they simply obey the law and marry someone of the opposite sex-despite speaking in Iowa at the time, which allows same-sex marriage by law; and just two days after the Atlantic Wire reported her naming of celebrity business mogul turned Obama "birther" conspirator, Donald Trump, as her potential running mate in the 2012 presidential election.
Gingrich has experienced a strong surge in public support since being essentially dismissed from contention after his campaign imploded in June, but his electability is questionable and wasn't helped by a CNN report that he maintains his insistence on children as young as nine be hired to replace unionized workers at their schools; and Texas governor, Rick Perry's campaign struggles can be summed up in one word: Oops.
Cain has vowed to "not be silenced" by his early exit from the presidential race, but with Newt Gingrich just as likely to fall off the public support wagon he's recently jumped on and rode, any real challenge to Mitt Romney as the GOP's presidential hopeful may just have been.
Follow Phillip Warlove on Twitter @WarloveRevolit
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