In a night filled with drama and a soundtrack mirroring that of a boxing heavyweight title bout, former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney and former Pennsylvania Sen. Rick Santorum duked it out in the heavily contested Super Tuesday primaries and caucuses.
Although there was light voter turnout across the board, Romney was able to use his campaign’s superior organization and support of an especially deep-pocketed super PAC to pick up victories in Massachusetts, Virginia and Vermont early on.
The biggest contest of the day was seen in Ohio, with Romney and Santorum going toe-to-toe attempting to gain support of the conservative voters across the Buckeye State.
Santorum had a strong showing among socially conservative voters, taking Oklahoma and Tennessee, but was partially hindered in Ohio by his campaign’s failure to complete the required paperwork in three of the state’s congressional districts – putting as many as 18 delegates in jeopardy.
Former House Speaker Newt Gingrich won handily in his home state of Georgia but failed to compete in the remaining states on Tuesday’s slate. Gingrich predicted a third comeback for his campaign following the victory, but it’s highly unlikely that his message will resonate outside of his backyard.
Texas Rep. Ron Paul earned minimal delegates and failed to gain any victories as the poll numbers began rolling in, though Alaska and Ohio remain undetermined as of press time.
The outcomes of Super Tuesday do little to end the race for the Republican nomination, but it clearly brought us closer to a two-candidate race between Romney and Santorum – a prospect many have ultimately declared.
Gingrich vowed to carry on until the end, declaring Tuesday’s outcomes to be a success on his campaign trail, but many are beginning to see the inevitability of Gingrich’s demise.
Romney had won five consecutive contests going into Tuesday, and continued to build on that momentum as the race moved forward.
The biggest platform of the day was the state of Ohio, with Romney opening his attacks and his wallet — putting together a $4 million blitz of negative ads against rival Rick Santorum. No Republican nominee has reached the White House without carrying the state of Ohio, and it was clear that the biggest emphasis was placed on the state.
With poll numbers still rolling in for several states as of press time, the momentum can be seen snowballing on both sides, but it will be tough for any candidate to keep up with the resources and firepower that Romney’s campaign holds.
It’s safe to say that anything can happen, but with the advantage in funds and organization I don’t see Romney giving any more ground to Santorum or Gingrich.
 
 
 
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Contact Matthew Westfall at [email protected]