How To Tell Rick Santorum and Rick Perry Apart

Let's face it — there are already too many Republicans in the 2016 presidential race to keep track of, and if Rick Perry announces his campaign Thursday as expected, there will be two Ricks in the running. How is anyone supposed to remember which Rick is which? American politics are confusing enough already. Perry and Rick Santorum share a lot of similar opinions (they're both Republicans after all) and don't look too different from one another. So how can you tell Santorum and Perry apart?

Perry is expected to announce his second bid for president sometime this month in Dallas. Both Perry and Santorum ran back in 2012, so the Ricks are no stranger to one another. They both fervently oppose gay marriage and abortion (though Santorum's view is slightly more extreme), they both want to secure the border, and they're both very religious. Politicians of the same political party tend to sound like one another any way because their ideologies are very similar, but it becomes infinitely more confusing when they have the same name.

Since it isn't likely that either Rick will change their name for the sake of American voters' sanity, here are four steps to help you determine which Rick is which.

Step 1: Check For Glasses

The easiest way to identify Perry is to check for glasses. The former Texas governor doesn't always wear them, but Santorum never does, so if the Rick in front of you has glasses on, it's definitely Perry.

Step 2: Check For An Accent

Perry hails from Texas, so he couldn't escape a slight southern drawl. It isn't extremely noticeable, but it stands out in comparison to Santorum's Pennsylvania accent (or lack thereof).

Step 3: Count The Kids

If the candidate in question has their family with them, counting the number of kids is a sure fire way to figure out which Rick it is. Perry has two kids, a son and daughter, while Santorum has a whopping seven, four sons and three daughters. A good rule of thumb to follow is, if you can't count all the kids on one hand, it's Santorum.

Step 4: Assess Age

If the first three steps haven't helped you figure out which Rick you're looking at or listening too, you can always try to determine which is older. The Ricks aren't too far apart in age, but Santorum is eight years younger than Perry, and he looks it (sorry, Perry). If the two are standing next to each other, it's safe to guess that the slightly older-looking one is Perry.

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