Newt Gingrich, the former House speaker, vowed Saturday to stay in the race for the Republican presidential nomination until the national convention this summer even if he loses Tuesday’s vote.
“I will go all the way to the convention,” Mr. Gingrich said. “I expect to win the nomination.”
“Why don’t you ask Governor Romney what he is going to do if [he] loses, since he is behind in both national polls,” Mr. Gingrich added.
The former House speaker vowed to remain in the race regardless of whether he secured a victory in Tuesday’s Florida primary, telling supporters that he anticipates a “wild and woolly” race for the nomination.
The former Massachusetts governor countered a few hours later while in Panama City, Florida, telling supporters that he remains confident in his chances of securing a victory in the Florida primary.
“I think we are going to win here, I sure hope so,” he said.
The statement comes as polls seem to have swung in favor of Mr. Gingrich, following his surprising victory in South Carolina, only to have swung back in favor of Mr. Romney. A series of recently released polls show Mr. Romney now leading the Georgia Republican; one poll shows Mr. Romney with a double-digit lead over Mr. Gingrich.
With the Republican presidential nomination possibly on the line, the two rivals spent much of the weekend making their appeals to Hispanic, Jewish and tea party voters, veterans of the armed forces and others.
Meanwhile, Mr. Romney and his allies continue to hold a 3 to 1 advantage in money spent on television advertising in the race’s final days. Robust early vote and absentee ballot totals followed a pre-primary turnout operation by his campaign could ultimately swing the election in favor of Mr. Romney.
