CAMPAIGN 2012
The Skip List: Who'll Be Missing During the Nominating Conventions? -- PICTURES
Updated: July 31, 2012 | 6:24 p.m.
July 18, 2012 | 2:15 p.m.
There are a lot of reasons why a politician might skip a nominating convention: Some might be too busy campaigning in their home states, others may want to distance themselves from the party at large.
"If historical precedent is a guide, President Obama should be worried about the recent spate of Democrats who have declared that they won’t attend their own party’s national convention," National Journal's Alex Roarty wrote in June. During the 2008 conventions, many Republicans opted out of attending -- and we all know what happened that November.
Make of it what you will, but here is our list of Republicans and Democrats who won't be seen in Tampa Bay or Charlotte.
REPUBLICAN George H.W. Bush This year will be the only party convention that the 41st president has skipped since he attended his first in 1980, when he was nominated as vice president. Read more here. (AP Photo/Pat Sullivan)
REPUBLICAN Barbara Bush Early in July, a Bush spokesman said that "sadly the situation around President Bush's mobility will prevent them from attending the Tampa convention.” (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite)
REPUBLICAN Jon Huntsman The former Utah governor's reasoning, as reported by The Salt Lake Tribune: "I will not be attending this year’s convention, nor any Republican convention in the future, until the party focuses on a bigger, bolder, more confident future for the United States -- a future based on problem solving, inclusiveness, and a willingness to address the trust deficit, which is every bit as corrosive as our fiscal and economic deficits." (AP Photo/Charles Dharapak)
REPUBLICAN George Allen In July, a spokeswoman for the former senator from Virginia told National Journal that "since we are locked in a close race and can't be in two places at once, the focus will continue to be listening and meeting with Virginia families, veterans, and small business leaders on the campaign trail." (AP Photo/Steve Helber)
REPUBLICAN Heather Wilson As reported by Hotline on Call, "Wilson spokesman Chris Sanchez said that the former congresswoman does not plan to attend the convention in August and will be campaigning in New Mexico at the time." (AP Photo/Jake Schoellkopf)
REPUBLICAN Linda McMahon If she wins her party's Senate nomination in August, she will not be attending the GOP convention. "Our focus is going to be on campaigning in Connecticut," a spokeswoman told the Connecticut Monitor. (AP Photo/Stephan Savoia)
REPUBLICAN Rep. Joe Walsh of Illinois, in midst of a reelection campaign, has decided to not attend the convention. "The conventions are nothing more than an excuse to mingle with insiders and party with the elite," he said in a statement. (Chet Susslin)
REPUBLICAN Rep. Denny Rehberg, R-S.D. (AP Photo/Lisa Kunkel)
REPUBLICAN Linda Lingle The Honolulu Civil Beat reports that the former Hawaii governor will spend the time campaigning for the Senate. (AP Photo/Ron Edmonds)
DEMOCRAT Claire McCaskill In June, the senator from Missouri announced that she would not be attending the Democratic National Convention. Speaking on behalf of the senator, an aide told National Journal that "in years when Claire is on the ballot, she has historically not gone to the convention... because she believes it's important to stay in Missouri to talk to voters." (AP Photo/Manuel Balce Ceneta)
DEMOCRATArizona Senate candidate Richard Carmona Read more at Hotline on Call. (AP Photo/Harry Cabluck)
DEMOCRAT Nick Rahall The congressman, along with his fellow West Virginia Democrats, Sen. Joe Manchin and Gov. Earl Ray Tomblin, has decided to skip the convention. Metro News of West Virginia reports: "The decisions of the three to stay home come after increasing pressure from Republicans to declare whether or not they support President Obama for reelection." (Liz Lynch)
DEMOCRATRep. Mark Critz, D-Pa. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)
DEMOCRATJoe Manchin "I intend to spend this fall focused on the people of West Virginia, whether that's representing them in my official U.S. Senate duties or here at home, where I can hear about their concerns and ideas to solve the problems of this great nation," the senator from West Virginia said in a statement. "I will remain focused on bringing people together for the next generation, not the next election." (AP Photo/Jeff Gentner)
DEMOCRATWest Virginia Gov. Earl Ray Tomblin (Jeff Gentner/AP Photo)
DEMOCRAT Ben Chandler The Democratic congressman from Kentucky explained to the Hotline that "I need to be working rather than going to a party." (OFFICE OF BEN CHANDLER)
DEMOCRATBetty Sutton "I would anticipate that I will have things to do in the district. There will be a lot of work to do locally. I would be more inclined to be here with my people," the Ohio congresswoman told Hotline on Call. (AP Photo/Ron Edmonds)
DEMOCRATRep. Jim Matheson, D-Utah (Liz Lynch)
DEMOCRATSen. Jon Tester, D-Mont. (Liz Lynch)
DEMOCRAT Rep. Kathy Hochul, D-N.Y. (AP Photo/David Duprey)
DEMOCRAT Rep. John Barrow, D-Ga. (AP Photo/John Bazemore)
DEMOCRATRep. Henry Cuellar, D-Texas (House.Gov)
DEMOCRATRep. Stephen Lynch, D-Mass. (AP Photo/Charles Dharapak)
DEMOCRAT Rep. Richard Neal, D-Mass. (AP Photo/Jessica Hill)
DEMOCRAT Jerry McNerney According to an aide who spoke with National Journal, the California congressman won't be attending because the convention conflicts with his son's wedding. (AP Photo/Haraz N. Ghanbari)
DEMOCRATRep. Mike McIntyre, D-N.C. (Almanac Of American Politics)
DEMOCRAT Rep. Larry Kissell, D-N.C. (Almanac Of American Politics)
DEMOCRATRep. Bill Owens, D-N.Y. (House.Gov)
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