Jacob Prall
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Many GOP voters are so tired of politics that they’ve turned their support to “the outsiders.” Donald Trump, Ben Carson, Carly Fiorina: These are outsiders. They’re people of the private sector, of business and medicine. The disdain for establishment GOP candidates is so great that a recent CNN poll shows these three candidates in the lead. Trump has occupied the No. 1 spot for a while, so there was no big shock there. Carson has steadily gained support through charming performances at debates and increased media coverage. His place as No. 3 could be expected. But the No. 2 spot, Fiorina, has had many people floored. Fiorina has skyrocketed from near anonymity to a leading candidate in the polls.
Mere weeks ago, she was unheard of. What has caused this massive change in Republican voter’s interest? Two factors, one political and the other more personal, seem to contribute to her rising popularity. Let’s start with the politics — her performance in debates.
Fiorina has been rock solid in both Republican debates, a deft speaker and worthy opponent to any candidate on that stage. Fiorina has pulled in people with her successful debates, like Carson, and with her business experience, like Trump has. This combination will prove to be critical in her campaign for the White House. That said, what’s more important than experience or debate prowess for a presidential candidate is media coverage. People won’t vote for you if they haven’t heard your name. And Trump may have been a crucial catalyst for Fiorina’s newly found publicity.
Trump made an entirely inappropriate comment about Fiorina’s appearance. The comment was both sexist and absolutely idiotic. Trump seems to believe that a president’s facial features must be paramount, or else they aren’t viable candidates. This twisted dual standard and personal attack relating to absolutely nothing regarding politics has drawn a lot of backlash for Trump. Fiorina’s well-handled response, and the waves Trump has stirred, may be pushing Fiorina into the spotlight. Trump was already a divisive figure for women (and just about everyone else), but his remarks against Fiorina may have been the last straw for many. The more he alienates women, the more his poll numbers will shrink while others catch up.
The question now is whether Fiorina can ride her new wave of interest to the White House. Her credentials will certainly be scrutinized to a higher degree now that she is a leader of the pack. Her time at Hewlett-Packard wasn’t entirely roses. She did oversee the largest high-tech merger up to that point in history (with Compaq in 2002). On the other hand, she was forced to resign by the Board of Directors in 2005. The reasons cited as reported by the Wall Street Journal and BusinessWeek were lackluster earnings after the merger, decreasing stock values, disagreements on performance, and her unwillingness to delegate power to division heads.
Fiorina could be riding high for the next few months or could fizzle out in the next few weeks. With an election cycle as wonky as this one, predicting GOP candidate success is an increasingly meaningless task. What we can expect is Trump and the establishment candidates grilling Fiorina on her tumultuous business history. Her outsider past might just be her downfall.