US election 2012: Mitt Romney admits he must do more to win female vote

Aides to Mr Obama swiftly cited the so-called “war on women” that they say Republicans are waging across the US by making it more difficult to obtain contraception and abortions.

“American women can’t trust Romney to stand up for them,” said Jim Messina, Mr Obama’s campaign manager, who predicted the gender gap would be a “severe problem” for the Republican.

Like his party rivals, Mr Romney has promised to revoke all funding for Planned Parenthood, a network of women’s clinics that provide family planning services including abortion.

And while he campaigned as a pro-choice champion in liberal-leaning Massachusetts, he now favours overturning Roe vs Wade, the Supreme Court judgment guaranteeing abortion rights.

However, a breakdown of the poll data showed that government birth control policy was rated the least important issue by women and men.

Rick Santorum, the Right-wing former Pennsylvania senator challenging Mr Romney for the Republican nomination, actually scored better among women than his rival, despite his harder line on contraception, which he has said is “not OK”.

Mr Romney’s aggressive campaign against “ObamaCare”, the president’s overhaul of the US health care system, appeared to be driving much female opposition to his candidacy.

Since January the 65-year-old front-runner has made his wife an evermore important part of his campaign in an apparent attempt to soften his robotic image and attract more women voters.

Asked in a radio interview in Wisconsin yesterday why her husband often came across as “stiff”, Mrs Romney said: “I guess we better unzip him and let the real Mitt Romney out because he is not!”

The 62-year-old housewife, who has survived cancer and multiple sclerosis, has energetically campaigned for Mr Romney across the US and is described as “Mitt’s Better Half” in the large section of his official website devoted to her.

She is frequently mobbed by more supporters than her husband when the couple walks along “rope lines” at his rallies, prompting suggestions that she should be the one running for office.

After one of her husband’s customary gaffes she even joked at a rally in Troy, Michigan, last month: “Maybe I should just do all the talking and let him just stand here and watch me.”

Michelle Obama, who is consistently rated one of the most popular people in US politics, will campaign prominently for her husband. However it was announced yesterday that Secretary of State Hillary Clinton will not join her former rival on the campaign trail.

You can skip to the end and leave a response. Pinging is currently not allowed.

Leave a Reply

Powered by WordPress | Designed by: Premium WordPress Themes | Thanks to Themes Gallery, Bromoney and Wordpress Themes