By December 2011 , Romney assumed an even more prominent role in the campaign , as she tried to offer a more rounded and compelling portrait of her husband while he fell behind Newt Gingrich for a stretch in polls . Her emphasis on their 42 years of marriage and his steadfastness following the onset of her disease offered an implicit but clear contrast with Gingrich 's own personal history . She had long been known within the family as the " Mitt-stabilizer " , due to the calming effect she had on her husband , and continued to perform that role during the up-and-down campaign . In particular , she began appearing with him more often during February 2012 as he dueled with Rick Santorum during the Republican presidential primaries . Regarding the couple 's net worth , she alluded to her health problems and said , " Look , I do n't even consider myself wealthy , which is an interesting thing , it can be here today and gone tomorrow . And how I measure riches is by the friends I have and the loved ones that I have and the people that I care about in my life . " In April 2012 , Ann Romney was spotlighted when Democratic commentator Hilary Rosen declared Romney to be unfit to address women 's economic issues because as a stay-at-home mother , she had " never worked a day in her life " . In response , Ann Romney issued her first tweet , saying " I made a choice to stay home and raise five boys . Believe me , it was hard work . " Rosen apologized the following day . Like all presidential candidates ' wives , her fashion choices came under scrutiny , with some critics praising her for a contemporary look that avoided standard campaign appearance clichés , while others said she lacked consistency and did not seem to be using the services of a stylist . On August 28 , Romney gave a prime-time speech before the 2012 Republican National Convention in Tampa , Florida , in which she stressed her own background and her family experiences , in an appeal to women voters . By early October , she and son Tagg had convinced the campaign to spend more time emphasizing her husband 's personal nature and character , rather than simply present issue and record arguments against Obama . Romney sparked discussion of Lancaster County , Pennsylvania being in play when she campaigned at Elizabethtown College
2012 Republican National Convention
2012 Republican National Convention
Ann Romney