Republican Jeb Bush (62), two-time Governor of Florida and brother of former President George W. Bush, was set to formally launch his 2016 presidential campaign on Monday, which, if it succeeds, would make him the third member of his family to hold the nation’s highest office.
According to reports, Mr. Jeb Bush was to make the announcement at 3 p.m. local time in Miami Dade College in his home State.
Latino connection
It is expected that Jeb will seek to underscore his connection to the Latino and African-American communities, minorities that are have a widespread presence in Florida.
While Jeb may seek to replicate the election victories of his father in 1988, and his brother in 2000 and 2004, he is entering a contest that already comprises an eclectic set of candidates on both sides, thus far dominated by former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton.
Leading Republican
Jeb is touted to lead the pack on the Republican side, not least because as arguably the best-known potential candidate across the nation, he has managed to raise “tens of millions of dollars” for his Super Political Action Committee, a key platform for critical campaigns against political opponents in the race. Observers here also noted that Jeb will seek to distance himself from some aspects of the campaign message of Mitt Romney, the former Massachusetts Governor who lost to U.S. President Barack Obama in 2012.
In this regard “Let Jeb be Jeb,” will be the message that the Republican leader’s campaign team would promote, one of his advisors was noted, and this will mean Americans could expect to see him “in places Romney did not visit and where candidates of their white-dominated party don't always go, such as black churches, Hispanic neighbourhoods and college campuses.” However, to follow a different path from that of Mr. Romney, Jeb will have to seriously apply himself to tackling town-hall style meetings with voter groups, and show a willingness to take some uncomfortable questions.
