COMMENTARY | Newt Gingrich won the South Carolina Primary on Saturday, according to the Washington Post. Rick Santorum has been revealed as the winner of the Iowa caucus, much to Mitt Romney’s detriment, according to CNN. Romney won the New Hampshire primary, as reported by ABC. While it was thought that Romney won New Hampshire and Iowa he seemed unstoppable. The first three contests have in fact gone to three different candidates. The race remains anyone’s game and the candidates are running hard.
The candidates are reacting to the situation in different ways.
Romney, still often regarded as the front-runner, says he will release his tax returns on Tuesday, according to CNN. He acknowledged that withholding them may have been a mistake and moved up his timeline by three months. On the positive side the nation will have an inside peek at the finances of the extremely wealthy candidate. On the downside it may demonstrate to America that Romney’s financial situation is so far into the top 1 percent that he may not be able to connect with average citizens.
Santorum gave his concession speech, available on YouTube via PBS, after the results were in. He seemed ready to fight on. Santorum correctly noted that what had been on the brink of a 3-0 slaughter with Mitt Romney in the lead has turned into an effective 3-way tie. He believes it’s anyone’s game now and plans to work even harder to win the GOP nod.
ABC News reports Ron Paul expects “a long, hard slog” during his campaign. Paul’s showing no signs of giving in and is adopting a new strategy. Rather than going for straight state wins, he seeks delegate count. That means he’ll focus on states that send delegates proportional to the popular vote more than “all or nothing” states, and states that have caucuses rather than primaries.
Gingrich won handily in South Carolina despite recent allegations that he asked his second wife for an open marriage and then divorced her when she refused as reported by CNN. CNN accurately predicted that it would not hurt Gingrich among evangelicals. The candidate is rallying and pursuing his campaign while riding a crest of victory that could boost future results.
With no candidate boasting multiple wins the race truly is wide open.