Here Are 3 Notable People You Won’t Hear From at the GOP Convention

Several major conservative leaders, including former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee, South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley, Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker, and New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie, have been invited to speak at the 2012 Republican National Convention in Tampa, Fla.

However, as of this writing, three notable figures are still missing from the list of announced speakers. And we’re not talking about right-leaning celebrities or conservative politicians who have recently found themselves in the spotlight; we’re talking about three public figures who, at one time or another, have played a major role in rallying the conservative base.

But before we get ahead of ourselves, let’s get this out of the way: National conventions are little more than an excuse to unite the base and fire up voters. Sure, a few people might show up and dispute their party’s candidate, but, as it has been for quite some time, both parties usually have their nominations tied up long before the conventions roll around.

Therefore, one of the only reasons these rallies still exist is to stoke voter enthusiasm.

That being said, here are three public figures the GOP — if it’s really interested in firing up and uniting the base — should perhaps give a second look:

Third Party Nominees for 2012

Ballot access to 270 or more electoral votes

Libertarian Party
Gary Johnson, Former Governor of New Mexico

Green Party
Jill Stein, Physician, of Massachusetts

Ballot access to less than 270, but more than 50 electoral votes

Constitution Party
Virgil Goode, Former U.S. Representative of Virginia

Justice Party
Rocky Anderson, Former Mayor of Salt Lake City, of Utah

American Independent Party, no nominee yet but candidates:
1. Virgil Goode, seeking a double nomination
2. Tom Hoefling, also the America’s Party nominee
3. Edward C. Noonan, Activist, of California
4. Wiley Drake, Radio host and pastor, of California

Peace and Freedom Party
Roseanne Barr, Comedian and Progressive activist

Ballot access to less than 50 electoral votes

Party for Socialism and Liberation
Peta Lindsay, Anti-war activist

Reform Party USA
Andre Barnett, Businessman and fitness model, of New York

America’s Party
Tom Hoefling, Political activist, of Iowa

Objectivist Party
Tom Stevens, Attorney and 2008 Objectivist Party presidential nominee

Socialist Party USA
Stewart Alexander, Activist and 2008 Socialist Party USA vice-presidential nominee, of California

Socialist Workers Party
James Harris, Activist from New York

Grassroots Party
Jim Carlson, Businessman from Minnesota

American Third Position Party
Merlin Miller, Independent filmmaker from Tennessee

No Ballot Access

Socialist Equality Party
Jerry White, Journalist and 1996 and 2008 Socialist Equality Party presidential nominee, of Michigan

Freedom Socialist Party
Stephen Durham, Socialist feminist activist, of New York

Prohibition Party
Jack Fellure, Perennial candidate, of West Virginia

Independent
Randall Terry, Pro-life activist of West Virginia

Randy Blythe, Vocalist and songwriter

Terry Jones, senior pastor of Dove World Outreach Center in Gainesville, Florida

Robert Burck, Street performer, of New York

Joe Schriner, Journalist, author, and perennial presidential candidate, of Ohio

Declined to run

The following people were the focus of presidential speculation in past media reports, but ultimately decided not to run as independent candidates.

Laurie Roth, Radio Talk Show Host - Roth announced her candidacy for the American Independent Party in November 2011. She also ran for the nomination of the Constitution Party, but lost at the convention. She withdrew from the American Independent Party race in July, after claiming before that she would run Independent. But she then endorsed Republican nominee Mitt Romney and said that she would try to help America in other ways.

Lou Dobbs, broadcast journalist and commentator, of New Jersey

Ron Paul, U.S. Representative, of Texas and Republican nominee

Donald Trump, businessman and television personality, of New York

Jesse Ventura, former Governor of Minnesota

Ralph Nader, attorney, Consumer advocate, and perennial presidential candidate of Connecticut

Michael Bloomberg, Mayor of New York City

Bernie Sanders, Socialist Senator, of Vermont

Howard Schultz, CEO of Starbucks

Americans Elect

No nominee - Americans Elect announced on May 17, 2012 that it would not field a candidate for President, as no candidate garnered enough support in the organization’s online primary to reach its self-imposed threshold for the nomination.

Boston Tea Party

No nominee - the Boston Tea Party dissolved itself on July 22, 2012, citing decline in membership activity.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_States_third_party_and_independent_presidential_candidates,_2012#Ballot_access_to_270_or_more_electoral_votes

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