With the 2012 political cycle coming to fruition, it is all but certain that Mitt Romney will be on the Republican ticket for this November’s presidential election.  Ron Paul is hundreds of electorates behind Romney and his campaign is slowly coming to an end.  Since last fall when Republican candidates started vying for donations and a share of the national spotlight, we have witnessed presidential candidates come and go.

Tim Pawlenty was in and out in a heartbeat. Herman Cain gained huge momentum until harassment allegations derailed his campaign. Jon Huntsman appealed to many independent voters just not Republican voters. Michelle Bachman was inactive in debates. Rick Perry reminded too many people of our last president. And Newt Gingrich was very experienced and had a very strong economic policy, but was considered too conservative by mainstream partisan media outlets. What about Santorum?

In 2008, John McCain selected a wildcard pick Sarah Palin to be his running mate. His selection at the time was considered a smart and decisive move. For a brief time he shot ahead in the polls, but that soon died out. Palin’s lack of experience and poorly chosen words in the national spotlight ruined her public image and even more importantly McCain’s campaign.

This is exactly why Romney’s selection will be very decisive. The front-runners include Marco Rubio, Paul Ryan and Mitch Daniels.

All would be considered “safe picks” by the media with each bringing their own strengths to his campaign. Although highly unlikely, Mike Huckabee, a presidential drop out, could be a realistic option to be chosen as Romney’s running mate.  Huckabee appeals mainly to social conservatives, but doesn’t exactly appeal to independents. This leaves us with the big three:

Marco Rubio: the freshman Florida Senator is a young and rising voice in the Republican Party. He is of Cuban descent and is well liked both on the state and national level. He is an economic conservative and only slightly leaning conservative on social issues.  For a Republican to be elected, Romney needs to focus his campaign on the economic troubles of our country and repealing ObamaCare. Rubio, if selected, could appeal to many swing voters and would likely give Romney that extra push to win Florida and all its electorates.

Paul Ryan: a representative for Wisconsin is an experienced congressional representative who is currently the chairman of the House Budget committee and is the Republican leading voice on conservative economic policy.  He introduced “The Path to Prosperity,” an alternative budget plan intended to cut federal spending, lower taxes, lower the federal deficit and repeal ObamaCare. Although Ryan was very quick to endorse Romney I believe he won’t be selected simply because he has a high standing on capital hill and is likely to run for president in 2016.

Mitch Daniels: the current governor of Indiana. Like Rubio, he is from a state that Obama won in 2008 that could easily be won by either party. He is a moderate Republican and brings a Midwest image that Romney wants to win-over come November.  Some criticism of Daniels revolves around his previous role as Budget Director under George W. Bush and the subsequent deficit that snowballed.

Reporter’s Pick: Marco Rubio would be the best pick for vice presidential candidate considering that he appeals to younger voters and could help Romney carry a larger Hispanic population in battle ground states.  Also as a new congressional representative who wasn’t present for the Bush administration, he carriers no baggage.