Romney (again) in 2016? That would be unusual, but not unprecedented

There’s increasing speculation that Mitt Romney — who, you recall, lost the Republican presidential nomination in 2008 and then won it four years later, only to lose in the general election to Barack Obama — may be at least considering the possibility of another run in 2016. Fueling the chatter was a recent Des Moines Register/Bloomberg Politics poll that found Romney faring best of seven potential Republican nominees among Iowa voters in hypothetical matchups against Hillary Clinton. (Although Romney’s wife, Ann, told the Los Angeles Times that “[n]ot only Mitt and I are done [with campaigning], but the kids are done. Done. Done. Done.”) 

However, should Romney decide to seek the nomination, he would be challenging not only Messrs. Cruz, Paul and Christie, but the weight of history: In the U.S., the two major political parties seldom give their failed presidential nominees another shot at the brass ring.