Cain's Challenges

Herman Cain recently enjoyed a surge in support for the GOP presidential nomination. But will it last? Walter C. Jones writes at the Morris News Service:

But Cain has never served in elective office and is behind Romney and Perry in fundraising, leaving most experts to discount his chances.

That’s because voters haven’t gotten serious about their choice yet, according to Steven P. Millies, associate professor of political science at the University of South Carolina-Aiken.

“Republicans all over the United States are having a hard time closing the deal with Romney even though it’s becoming more inevitable,” he said.

Economic conservatives, including those in the tea-party movement, don’t trust him because of the healthcare plan he instituted in Massachusetts when he was governor, and evangelicals don’t trust him because he’s a Mormon.

“What you’ve really got is a double strike against Romney,” Millies said.

Independents do prefer him, as do those over age 65, according to the breakdown of the polls. His strength in New Hampshire, where InsiderAdvantage has him leading with 39 points to Cain’s 24, stems from being governor of a neighboring state.

So, the conservatives in the party are trying out different alternatives to him. Cain, though, isn’t likely to be it when it’s time to vote unless he can quickly get the wherewithal to compete in large states like Florida, said Robert Jackson, political science professor at Florida State University.

“It’s going to be important for him to translate his momentum into fundraising,” Jackson said of Cain. “In a month or so he won’t be the flavor of the month.”