Consider the importance of invisible primaries in US Presidential elections.

simultaneously when the office of presidency is vacant. Sometimes during incumbency a same party member will challenge their office but rarely is this frequent. Consider the invisible primaries of 2011 which were solely Republican.   For the candidates IP’s are an opportunity for them to gain a national name and recognition, especially if they have not done so before. Candidates may express themselves through speeches, debates and book publishing’s like ‘No apology’ by Mitt Romney. And the media play a role to ensure that the candidates profile is raised through in-depth interviews such as the ‘face of the nation’ broadcasted by CBS. In 2012 it was the Iowa straw poll that bolstered Michelle Bachmann’s campaign, and she was the first women to do so. Additionally the invisible primary period is important as it is an opportunity for candidates to fundraise for their campaign, which is most seriously needed to visit states, run TV campaigns and host fund raising dinners to bolster their for the front loaded primaries. Sometimes insufficient funding can impede a campaign. For instance Elizabeth Dole in 1999 ended her presidential bid. And even the wealth of money a candidate has may deter individuals to pursue candidacy, like Democrats Dick Gephardt and Bob Kerry.  Arguably one of the reasons for Romney’s success in the nominations was because of his large war chest. By the 31st December he had raised over 56 million dollars of the total 85 million by the Republican Party candidates. Finally Invisible primaries are important as they enable candidates to endorse party support and to gain momentum for their campaign before the gruelling campaign to come. But fundamentally the period is significant to the electorate as it ensures that voters are aware of who they are voting for in the forthcoming primaries and caucuses.Many have identified that the front runner of the invisible primary is the winner of the actually presidential nomination. For example Ronald Reagan in 1980, and Bush senior in 1988 and Al gore and Bush in 2000. However this is not a definite trend and sometimes there are exceptions to the rule. For example Howard Dean of Vermont in 2004 was in the lead of the IP but during a convention his scream resulted in media satire to damage his lead considerably. Additionally Hillary Clinton who was frontrunner in the 2008 primaries by 18% was beaten by Obama. Therefore not always is this true and one should remember that polls, and speeches do not constitute who wins the presidential nominations. Furthermore Antony Bennett has observed that Invisible primaries are not relevant at all, and that they are ‘not so invisible’. He describes the Ames straw poll as carnival- like and that it they attract people not really interested in politics but really interested in the free food. Additionally the supporters of the candidates are not very representative of the people who vote in the Iowa caucus.