Former Pennsylvania U.S. Senator Rick Santorum delivered a stunning blow Tuesday night, capturing primary victories in Minnesota, Missouri, and Colorado.
The Pennsylvania Republican, who was widely considered a lost cause in the race for the Republican nomination, used the momentum to undermine former Massachusetts Governor Mitt Romney’s status as the Republican front-runner, calling on supporters to unite around his social conservative message.
“I don’t stand here to claim to be the conservative alternative to Mitt Romney. I stand here to be the conservative alternative to Barack Obama,” said Mr. Santorum. “This is the most important election in your lifetime. This is an election fundamentally about the kind of country you’re going to hand off to your children and grandchildren, whether they are going to have the level of freedom and opportunity that you have.”
Of the eight nominating contests so far, Mr. Santorum has now won four, while Mr. Romney has won three and former House Speaker Newt Gingrich one. Until Tuesday, Mr. Santorum, a former Pennsylvania senator, had won only a single contest, a narrow victory in Iowa’s January 3 caucus.
The latest election results are likely to leave Republicans reeling. Until Tuesday, Mr. Romney was widely considered the Republican front-runner, who simply had to fend off a challenge from Mr. Gingrich. Now, the latest results indicate that Mr. Romney is likely to face a drawn out battle with Mr. Santorum, who is likely to court voters supporting Mr. Gingrich’s more conservative message.
The latest election results also indicate that Mr. Romney’s expansive campaign operation may fall short in the long run. In Tuesday Missouri’s primary, Mr. Santorum won 55 percent of the vote, while Mr. Romney followed with 25 percent — a difference of 30 percent. Mr. Santorum’s Missouri victory margin was event more substantial: The Pennsylvania Republican captures 5,000 more votes than Mr. Romney and 29,000 more than Mr. Romney’s combined Iowa and Nevada totals.
Mr. Romney, who leads the Republican field in terms of fundraising and in campaign operations, on Wednesday sought to downplay the election results, offering his congratulations to Mr. Santorum’s campaign. In Denver, Mr. Romney congratulated Mr. Santorum, saying Republicans would unite behind the eventual nominee and that he expected to be that candidate.
