Romney’s acceptance address tried to connect him with general election voters

Tampa, FL, United States (4E) – Two days after delegates in the Republican National Convention (RNC) nominated Mitt Romney as the GOP candidate for November’s presidential elections, the former Massachusetts governor formally accepted it. Thursday’s speech reached out to those disaffected by three and a half years of President Barack Obama and offered a clear cut alternative on government’s role in America.

The rousing address capped the three-day event filled with speeches by GOP party leaders and family members. It was clear that Romney wanted to use the occasion to reintroduce an image that is sympathetic to the daily concerns of ordinary Americans.

He focused on putting back the the economic recovery back on track, regaining the military’s strong position on the global stage, sustaining the health care system, and bringing back optimism for the sake of future generations.

During the party’s primary process, Romney tried to convince voters of his deep conservative credentials although this could potentially be a problem when it comes to getting the support of the general electorate. The Obama administration is also using it as ammunition to attack Romney during the summer campaign.

Much of this week’s RNC event in Tampa, Florida was aimed to reposture Romney as a man who can connect to the general election audience.

The speech was a clear effort to educate the voters inside the Tampa Bay Times Forum as well as those watching on television about the real person behind the veil of Romney the Governor or Romney the Businessman. In some instances, he showed that he has a funny side in him, and in some cases an emotional side especially when he talked about his parents, his wife and kids, and his time in the private sector.

The nationally televised speech was the biggest in Romney’s entire career in politics and it also attempted improve his low favorable rating as shown by the different polls before the convention. To improve his image, he made overtures to win over women voters — a segment of the electorate where his opponent is ahead by 10 points according to the latest poll conducted by NBC News/Wall Street Journal.

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