Ted Cruz
You know him because: A former Texas solicitor general, he's a Tea Party favorite who upset establishment favorite Lt. Gov. David Dewhurst in the 2012 Senate primary in Texas.
Why Republicans love him: As a Cuban-American, if elected, Cruz could help the GOP appeal to the country's growing number of Latinos.
Democrats don't like him because: Cruz thinks Islamic law threatens to take hold in the United States and believes "Sharia law is an enormous problem."
Artur Davis
You know him because: He was a Democratic U.S. representative from Alabama and in 2010 lost his bid for governor of that state in the Democratic primary.
Why Republicans love him: Formerly a Democrat and a 2008 Democratic Convention speaker, Davis called the party's economic policies "fundamentally wrong" and this year switched his party affiliation to Republican.
Democrats don't like him because: See why Republicans love him.
[See a Slideshow of 5 Ways to Make the GOP Convention Matter.]
Nikki Haley
You know her because: She is the first woman governor of South Carolina, and only the second Indian-American governor in the country.
She doesn't want you to remember: When asked about her views on women's rights in an appearance on The View, Haley said that "women don't care about contraception."
Why Republicans love her: She provides diversity to a party dominated by white men, and an opportunity for it to widen the party base.
Democrats don't like her because: Haley supports voter ID laws, which Democrats say discriminate against minorities and the poor and prevent them from casting ballots.
Lucé Vela Fortuño
You know her because: She's the first lady of Puerto Rico.
Why Republicans like her: Fortuño and her husband help the GOP court the Latino vote and expand the party's diversity.
Ann Romney
You know her because: Romney is the wife of presumptive Republican presidential nominee Mitt Romney.
She doesn't want you to remember: Romney said in an interview, "I don't even consider myself wealthy," despite the fact that her husband is worth nearly $250 million.
Why Republicans love her: Romney is active on the campaign trail and sheds light on her husband's softer side.
Democrats don't like her because: Romney and her husband's campaign capitalized on comments from an Obama strategist that Romney didn't understand working mothers because she'd "never worked a day in her life." On the basis that she had raised the couple's five sons, the comment was used to accuse Democrats of undervaluing the contributions of mothers who stay at home to raise their children.
Chris Christie
You know him because: Christie is the governor of New Jersey.
He doesn’t want you to remember: In an attempt to explain why he wanted gay marriage to be put before voters on the ballot, Christie compared the issue to the civil rights movement by saying, “I think people would have been happy to have a referendum on civil rights rather than fighting and dying in the streets in the South.” The governor was slammed for his historical ignorance, as Southern blacks were kept from voting by intimidation and discrimination, which would have made it difficult for a referendum to expand civil rights to pass.
Republicans love him because: Many Republicans were hoping Christie himself would run for the Republican presidential nomination, but he eventually decided 2012 was not his year. He is lauded within the party for his no-nonsense approach to fiscal issues and isn’t afraid to show his personality.
Democrats don’t like him because: Democrats opposed Christie’s massive budget cuts in New Jersey when in 2011 he eliminated nearly $1 billion from the state’s proposed budget using a line-item veto, and he was criticized for making fiscal decisions without consulting his state's legislative branch.
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