The Fast Fix: Can Mitt Romney last as the GOP frontrunner?

As the GOP presidential race for 2012 heats up, can former Massachusetts governor Mitt Romney remain the front runner?

Mitt Romney will officially enter the 2012 presidential race on Thursday. And he starts the race as the frontrunner.

Romney has been planning to run for president ever since he dropped out of the 2008 contest in favor of Senator John McCain.

Most polling suggests he former Massachusetts governor leads the Republican field although he is far from a clear favorite for the nomination.

Romney does bring major advantages to the race.

First and foremost, he is a fundraising machine. Romney raked in more than $10 million in a single day last month and has the capacity to raise much much more.

Second, he's done this all before. Romney knows the grueling pace of a presidential bid. And the Republican party has shown a tendency to nominate the person perceived to have finished second the last time around. That's Romney.

Third, he is a strong frontrunner in New Hampshire, the second state to vote in the nominating process. No other candidate has such a solid lead in an early state.

Romney has one major disadvantage but it's a doozy.

He signed a health care law in Massachusetts that many Republicans have compared unfavorably to the national health care law supported by President Obama last year. Romney has so far refused to apologize for his support of the Massachusetts law.

No one has a better chance at being the Republican nominee than Romney. But, the health care hurdle is a high one and Romney hasn't yet cleared it.

----

Get The Fix in your e-mail inbox! Click here to sign-up for the Morning Fix newsletter. Click here for the Afternoon Fix newsletter. Follow The Fix on Twitter @thefix or @thehyperfix.