Via Fox News
Mitt Romney’s opponents earned enough victories in Super Tuesday’s stakes to keep the GOP presidential primary race in flux – but Romney was able to power through any nicks inflicted by Rick Santorum and Newt Gingrich as the front-runner increased his ever-expanding lead in the delegate count.
Romney won six state contests on Tuesday, including Ohio. Santorum picked up three, and Gingrich picked up one.
While the victories by Santorum and Gingrich keep the race going, Romney’s Super Tuesday wins brought him a big step closer to the overriding goal of all four GOP candidates – amassing 1,144 delegates and clinching the nomination.
In the post-Super Tuesday phase, the race revolves not around gaining momentum but reaching for that delegate threshold.
The numbers show Romney building a comfortable, albeit reversible, lead as the candidates head into Kansas this weekend and back down South next week for contests in Mississippi and Alabama.
Romney now leads with 415 delegates – the number includes endorsements tallied by the Associated Press from members of the Republican Party who can support any candidate.
In the same count, Santorum is in second with 176 delegates.Gingrich has 105, and Ron Paul has 47.
Read more here.
Romney
Santorum
Gingrich
Paul
Via Fox News
Mitt Romney, after fending off Rick Santorum in his home state of Michigan, is fast-approaching the biggest test so far of his volatile front-runner status: next week’s Super Tuesday contests where 419 delegates are up for grabs.The former Massachusetts governor charges into those 10 contests with a head of steam, after securing back-to-back victories Tuesday night in Michigan and Arizona.The only stop along the way is the Washington state caucus contest this Saturday.Romney will have to unleash the force of his campaign juggernaut, as his competitors are still polling strong in key Super Tuesday states.Rick Santorum, who placed second in both contests on Tuesday, is leading in most recent polls out of Ohio. Newt Gingrich is leading in Georgia, the state he used to represent in Congress.
Read more here.
Romney:”What a great victory!”
Rick Santorum:”What an absolutely great night!”
Full debate
Santorum-Paul exchange over Conservative records
Romney:You can’t be in business and not be fiscal conservative
Gingrich: Stupid that America can’t protect its borders
Romney to Santorum:While I worked for the Olympics, you voted for bridge to nowhere
Santorum on Bailouts: Romney supported Wall Street
Candidates describe themselves in one word
Paul calls Santorum ‘Fake’
Via Fox News
The Republican presidential contest is a two-man race no more.
Rick Santorum proved that the 2012 primary election still has a few surprises left, after he went three for three in Tuesday’s contests and once again shook up the GOP nomination battle.
Santorum, in perhaps the biggest upset of the night, was declared the winner of the Colorado caucuses — a contest Mitt Romney had been leading in recent polls and won in the 2008 race. The former Pennsylvania senator also won the Minnesota caucuses and the non-binding Missouri GOP primary.
The candidates head next into Maine, and later in the month to Arizona and Michigan. Santorum’s performance stokes questions about Romney’s appeal in some corners of the Republican Party but also puts the pressure on Newt Gingrich – as he challenges Santorum’s claim to be the “conservative” alternative to Romney.
Santorum, though, said Tuesday night in Missouri that he wasn’t looking to be the alternative to Romney.
“I stand here to be the conservative alternative to Barack Obama,” Santorum said.
The three-for-three finish marked the best night of Santorum’s campaign since Iowa, in which he was belatedly declared the winner.
Read more here.
Via Fox News
Mitt Romney has won the Nevada Republican presidential caucuses, Fox News projects.
He becomes the first 2012 GOP candidate to win two consecutive elections, after having defeated Newt Gingrich in the Florida primary earlier in the week.
With 21 percent of precincts reporting, Romney has 39 percent of the vote. Gingrich with 27 percent is still in a close race for second against Ron Paul who has 19 percent. Fox News projects Rick Santorum who has 14 percent of the vote, will finish in last place.
Nevada offers a modest delegate haul, with 28 convention delegates at stake. Romney led the field going into the race with 87, followed by Gingrich with 26, Santorum with 14 and Paul with four. It takes 1,144 delegates to win.
Gingrich, meanwhile, has kept his gaze trained on upcoming contests, the next of which will be held in Colorado, Minnesota and Missouri — and later in Maine, Michigan and Arizona.
Gingrich told Fox News he hopes to be “even with or slightly ahead” of Romney in the delegate count by early April.
For the near term, Romney has a healthy lead in delegates and will build on that advantage Saturday. Nevadans overwhelmingly supported the former Massachusetts governor in the 2008 presidential caucuses, and did not appear to be tiring of his candidacy in 2012.
Read more here.
Via Fox News
Mitt Romney is leading Newt Gingrich in early returns out of the Florida Republican presidential primary, as he looks to secure a victory in the biggest contest to date.
With 50 percent of precincts reporting, Romney is leading with 48 percent. Gingrich has 31 percent, followed by Rick Santorum with 13 percent and Ron Paul with 7 percent. All polls in the state will close by 8 p.m. ET.
Romney, the former Massachusetts governor, also is leading in exit polls among two of Florida’s largest constituencies — seniors and Hispanics.
The Florida contest is the fourth so far in the Republican presidential nominating season and will inevitably serve as a tie-breaker of sorts after three distinct candidates won the first three elections. Sanoturm and Paul are also in the race, but did not compete in Florida.
Read more here.
The full debate
Romney scolds Gingrich for calling him ‘Anti-Immigrant
Paul wants to be friends with Cuba
Newt suggests Romney guilty of foreclosures for owning bank stocks
Santorum to Gingrich and Romney: Enough with petty attacks
Romney defends his success
Ron Paul: Welfare helps the wealthy
Ron Paul on colonizing the Moon: We should send some politicians there
Paul to Gingrich: You didn’t really balance the budget in the 90′s
Candidates solutions for uninsured
Santorum tough talk on Cuba
Romney hammers Obama on Israel
Gingrich: I will move U.S.Embassy to Jerusalem on day 1
Ron Paul’s closing statement
Mitt Romney’s closing statement
Newt Gingrich’s closing statement
Rick Santorum’s closing statement
