Former Pennsylvania Senator Rick Santorum handily won caucuses in Colorado (36 delegates) and Minnesota (40 delegates) Feb. 7, stunning the Florida victor and winner of three of the first five GOP nomination votes, Mitt Romney.
This means that Santorum has now won four states to Romney’s three and Gingrich’s one in South Carolina. Although Missouri has yet to hold its official caucus, which will occur later in the election cycle (note to Craig Kilby – please explain why this is).
Santorum, who was dismissed by many as a candidate because he focused all his resources and energy on Iowa (which he only narrowly won), now has to be considered as the clear alternative to Mitt Romney.
However, that’s not what Santorum said in his speech Tuesday night. Santorum considers himself to be the clear conservative alternative to President Barack Obama.
The next caucus is Maine this Saturday, in which Santorum is unlikely to contest the popular former Massachusetts governor.
Michigan, where Romney’s father was governor, and Arizona, will hold the next primaries where delegates will be allocated on Feb. 28. There will be a GOP debate on CNN in Arizona on Feb. 22. Santorum may still perform well in Michigan, given his populist appeal, but Arizona will be a critical state for him to win if he hopes to obtain the nomination.
That is followed closely by another caucus in Washington on Mar. 3. Then Super Tuesday on Mar. 6, where Virginia will get to vote, but only between Ron Paul and Mitt Romney – a significant reason why BD endorsed Mitt Romney.
