| Election Name: | 2012 Republican vice presidential nomination |
| Type: | primary |
| Previous Election: | 2008 Republican Party vice presidential candidate selection |
| Previous Year: | 2008 |
| Next Election: | 2016 Republican Party vice presidential candidate selection |
| Next Year: | 2016 |
| Nominee1: | Paul Ryan |
| Colour1: | DE0100 |
| Home State1: | Wisconsin |
| Vice Presidential nominee | |
| Before Election: | Sarah Palin |
| After Election: | Paul Ryan |
On May 29, 2012, former Governor Mitt Romney of Massachusetts won the 2012 nomination by the Republican Party for President of the United States, and became the presumptive nominee of the party.[1] [2] On August 11, 2012, Romney officially announced his selection of Wisconsin Representative Paul Ryan as his running mate to supporters via an iPhone app, though the selection of Ryan had already leaked to the press hours before the official announcement.[3] Ryan was the first individual from Wisconsin to appear on a national ticket of a major party as a nominee either for President or Vice President of the United States, although third-party presidential candidate Robert M. La Follette won 16% of the popular vote in the 1924 election.[4] The Romney–Ryan ticket ultimately lost to the Obama–Biden ticket in the 2012 presidential election, but the defeat did not harm either of their careers; from 2015 to 2019, Ryan served as Speaker of the United States House of Representatives while Romney, having moved to Utah, has been in the United States Senate since 2019.
Romney asked Beth Meyers, an aide, to head up the search team for selecting a vice presidential candidate.[5] It was speculated that Romney might announce his running mate in July to create early enthusiasm and boost fundraising,[6] but this proved untrue. Romney stated that he would select a pro-life vice presidential candidate.[7]
Political analyst Larry Sabato stated that Romney could pick a vice presidential running mate that would help electorally such as by delivering a swing state or a demographic group.[8] Romney's associates suggested the VP pick was likely to be someone mild-mannered with high integrity and have a similar aptitude for analysis.
According to the book Double Down, Romney's campaign narrowed down his list of potential nominees for vice president to eleven individuals in April 2012:[9]
The list was later further narrowed down to five individuals: Christie, Pawlenty, Portman, Rubio, and Ryan.[10] According to Double Down, many on Romney's campaign favored Ryan because he was "young, telegenic, Irish Catholic, with blue collar appeal," and could potentially help the campaign in his competitive home state. Romney also personally liked Ryan and felt comfortable campaigning with him. Christie was also strongly considered, but the vetting process raised several issues.
Having returned from his overseas tour of the United Kingdom, Israel, and Poland, Romney planned a bus tour of Virginia, North Carolina, and Florida with his then-yet to be announced running mate.[11] It was possible that Romney could have chosen to stall his announcement until at least August 12, the last day of the Summer Olympics, in order to attract greater media and voter attention while still allowing time for campaigning and fundraising before the Republican National Convention, which would begin on August 27.[12]
On August 10, 2012, it was announced that Romney would introduce his running mate on August 11, 2012, in Norfolk, Virginia, after touring the USS Wisconsin,[13] [14] [15] [16] leading several news sources to speculate that his choice would be U.S. Representative Paul Ryan of Wisconsin.[17] Shortly after 7 a.m. on August 11, the Romney campaign officially announced Ryan as its choice for vice president through its mobile app titled "Mitt's VP".[18]
Political analyst Larry Sabato stated that Romney could pick a vice presidential running mate that would help electorally such as by delivering a swing state or a demographic group.[8] [19] Romney's associates suggested the VP pick was likely to be someone mild-mannered with high integrity and have a similar aptitude for analysis.[20] Media speculation and analysis on vice presidential picks included: