Key support for Romney on eve of Super Tuesday
Source: Agencies |
March 6, 2012, Tuesday
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MITT Romney hopes to use today's massive batch of presidential primary contests in 10 states to reassert himself as the unchallenged front-runner in the Republican race to pick a challenger to President Barack Obama.
On the eve of the biggest day of voting so far - the so-called Super Tuesday batch of primaries and caucuses - Romney had picked up key endorsements from Republican Eric Cantor, the second-ranking Republican in the House of Representatives, and fellow conservatives Senator Tom Coburn and John Ashcroft, a former attorney general and senator.
At stake in today's voting are one-third of the delegates needed to clinch the nomination, altogether a larger prize than all the previous primaries and caucuses combined.
The outcome could again reshape the Republican nomination battle which has seen several candidates make a serious run at Romney - former Pennsylvania Senator Rick Santorum being the latest.
Former Massachusetts governor Romney is gaining momentum, following his fourth straight victory in Saturday's Washington state caucuses.
In an interview yesterday, Cantor said: "We're coalescing around Mitt Romney's plan to actually address the economic challenges we have."
Ashcroft, an attorney general under George W. Bush, threw his support behind Romney yesterday. "No other candidate stands out for his executive leadership experience or ability to accomplish difficult tasks," he said.
Many of the most conservative Republicans distrust Romney's ideological purity because of his moderate positions in the past on such key issues as abortion, gay marriage and health care reform.
Super Tuesday's defining contest may be in the big Midwestern industrial state of Ohio, where Santorum and Romney have devoted tremendous time and resources in recent weeks.
Preparing for the worst, Romney's campaign began preparing for a possible loss in Ohio, where polls show him locked in a dead heat with Santorum, though the latest polls found Santorum slipping there.
"I don't think any state is a must-win," Romney adviser Eric Fehrnstrom said.
"The only must-do on a candidate's check list is getting 1,144 delegates."
All told, 419 delegates are at stake today. Romney leads with 203 delegates from previous contests, Santorum has 92, Newt Gingrich has 33 and Texas Representative Ron Paul, 25.
On the eve of the biggest day of voting so far - the so-called Super Tuesday batch of primaries and caucuses - Romney had picked up key endorsements from Republican Eric Cantor, the second-ranking Republican in the House of Representatives, and fellow conservatives Senator Tom Coburn and John Ashcroft, a former attorney general and senator.
At stake in today's voting are one-third of the delegates needed to clinch the nomination, altogether a larger prize than all the previous primaries and caucuses combined.
The outcome could again reshape the Republican nomination battle which has seen several candidates make a serious run at Romney - former Pennsylvania Senator Rick Santorum being the latest.
Former Massachusetts governor Romney is gaining momentum, following his fourth straight victory in Saturday's Washington state caucuses.
In an interview yesterday, Cantor said: "We're coalescing around Mitt Romney's plan to actually address the economic challenges we have."
Ashcroft, an attorney general under George W. Bush, threw his support behind Romney yesterday. "No other candidate stands out for his executive leadership experience or ability to accomplish difficult tasks," he said.
Many of the most conservative Republicans distrust Romney's ideological purity because of his moderate positions in the past on such key issues as abortion, gay marriage and health care reform.
Super Tuesday's defining contest may be in the big Midwestern industrial state of Ohio, where Santorum and Romney have devoted tremendous time and resources in recent weeks.
Preparing for the worst, Romney's campaign began preparing for a possible loss in Ohio, where polls show him locked in a dead heat with Santorum, though the latest polls found Santorum slipping there.
"I don't think any state is a must-win," Romney adviser Eric Fehrnstrom said.
"The only must-do on a candidate's check list is getting 1,144 delegates."
All told, 419 delegates are at stake today. Romney leads with 203 delegates from previous contests, Santorum has 92, Newt Gingrich has 33 and Texas Representative Ron Paul, 25.
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