Mitt Romney hasn't yet committed to the first debate of the presidential campaign, just the latest signal that the former Massachusetts governor is in no hurry to get into the race or engage in the rough and tumble of a primary campaign.
The South Carolina Republican Party on Friday released a list of expected participants for the May 5 debate it's holding with Fox News — and Romney, the party’s nominal front-runner, is conspicuously absent. Newt Gingrich, Tim Pawlenty, Rick Santorum, Ron Paul, and Buddy Roemer are all expected to debate in Greenville, S.C. Pawlenty, Roemer and Herman Cain have all formed presidential exploratory committees.
Romney has long been eyeing a late entrance into the race, with his team foreseeing a long slog to the nomination. He has laid out ambitious fundraising goals and pursued an aggressive strategy of supporting local Republican candidates and party organizations through his network of federal and state-based political action committees. But he has kept a relatively low public profile compared to many of his potential rivals, often going for weeks at a time without public appearances — a stark contrast to his 2008 campaign.
Romney aides did not immediately comment.
“We are thrilled by the overwhelming interest we have seen so far in this debate,” state GOP chairwoman Karen Floyd said in a statement. “The road to the White House travels through South Carolina, as our Republican electorate has selected every eventual nominee since our primary’s inception in 1980. We are looking forward to our debate as the official kickoff for the presidential primary season.”
A South Carolina party spokesman did not immediately say whether other potential contenders like Haley Barbour — who will face a high-stakes contest in the state and is visiting this weekend — had been invited. But in an odd logistical quirk, the party said that only candidates who have created a formal exploratory committee would be eligible to participate, while also noting that not all expected participants have done so at the moment. Neither Santorum nor Paul have official exploratory committees, and the implication is that they would have to form their committees by May 5 to join the debate.
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