Politics & Government

Political Poll: Santorum Continues Conservative State Wins

But Mitt Romney has more than twice the number of delegates as his main challenger; and Ron Paul and Newt Gingrich remain in the race.

Even after Rick Santorum won in Louisiana, an Associated Press article in the New Orleans Picayune noted that Santorum still “dramatically lags behind (Mitt) Romney in the hunt for delegates.”

The New York Times lists the delegate count like this:

  • Romney            568*
  • Santorum          273
  • Gingrich            135
  • Paul                    50

That means Romney is nearly halfway to the 1,144 delegates needed to clinch the Republican nomination.

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But Santorum’s win was part of a pattern, according to an Associated Press article in the New Orleans Picayune:

“The under-funded underdog has tended to win in Bible Belt states that include Tennessee, Mississippi and Alabama.”

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While campaigning in Pennsylvania and Wisconsin, Santorum “took an unmistakable jab at Romney:

"Don't make the mistake that Republicans made in 1976. Don't nominate the moderate. When you do, we lose."

In 1976, Republicans chose President Gerald Ford over Ronald Reagan, and Ford subsequently lost to Jimmy Carter.

Meanwhile, FOX News reported that Romney said he was glad to pick up some delegates in Louisiana, although only 20 of 46 were awarded in the primary. The remainder will be awarded in the state’s June convention.

FOX also states that Romney kept his focus on Barack Obama:

"Every day that passes with President Obama in the White House is a missed opportunity for America to get back on the right path.”

Wisconsin and Pennsylvania are up next in the delegate hunt, but Bob Ray Sanders of the Fort Worth Star-Telegram says that Texas, with a May 29 primary, could have a big say in the Republican nomination:

"Intra-party battle lines have been drawn for a while as the elder Bushes and other GOP heavyweights backed Romney, and Gov. Rick Perry, after a failed presidential bid, threw his staunch support behind Newt Gingrich.

That leaves Santorum -- with his growing Tea Party, social conservative and evangelical support -- and Rep. Ron Paul, who has a following of Libertarians and other big-government haters."

Sanders said that polls have Santorum leading in Texas by 8 percent over Romney, “35 percent to 27 percent, followed by Gingrich with 20 percent and Paul with 8 percent.

So, if the election were today, who would you vote for as our next president?


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