#Marcomentum is real, and Iowa made it happen

After a strong third-place showing in the Iowa Caucus, Senator Marco Rubio has surged in New Hampshire and national polls to a clear second place. With the field essentially narrowing to a race between Rubio, Donald Trump and Senator Ted Cruz, the Florida Senator has united both conservatives and moderates with an aspirational message about a new American Century. As the only conservative candidate that has demonstrated both the ability to win and to govern after doing so, Rubio has momentum leading into New Hampshire to either a close second place finish or even the outright possibility of winning the state.

Rubio is the only candidate that can appeal to both moderate and conservative Republicans. With one of the most positive favorability ratings of any candidate running (64 percent in the most recent Public Policy Polling national survey), the Floridian stands the most to gain from other candidates fading or dropping out. Up 8 points nationally since their most recent poll prior to the caucus, Rubio is clearly the candidate with momentum — the candidate that can end the insurgency of Trump that has inspired nothing but the worst elements of human nature.

His positive message is far more appealing than anger, something that will appeal to a general electorate. Through his inspiring life journey from struggling with student debt and growing up working class to becoming a United States Senator, he is an example that people do have the ability to unlock their potential. Further, in an election cycle focused on anger at both political parties, an uplifting message is necessary to repair the trust deficit and partisanship that have occurred under the last two presidencies. There is evidence that his message is resonating through the entire Republican Party and not solely his lane of support as measured by a massive uptick in favorability Rubio’s favorability has improved by a net 28 percent despite the onslaught of negative advertising against him and daily attacks from other candidates fighting for the same “lane” of supporters.

Senator Rubio has also demonstrated that he can articulate a message of conservatism that resonates with both a primary and general electorate. He has the ability to explain why reform is necessary to make government smaller and more efficient so that programs like Social Security and Medicare can be saved and so students have the ability to seek the education that they need to succeed in a global marketplace.

In a time of economic malaise and anger at Washington, our country needs a leader that doesn’t just talk about attaining the American Dream; we need someone who understands the difficulties that a new generation faces. In electing Marco Rubio, Republicans have the ability to elect a new President that can embark on an agenda of reform that will once again spur a resurgent America.