Giuliani Expects More GOP Candidates

Meanwhile, Santorum says 'damn right' we cling to guns, religion

(NEWSER) - Bad news for Rick Santorum: Mitt Romney has taken the lead in Santorum's own home state of Pennsylvania. Romney is at 42% support and Santorum at 37% in the latest Public Policy Poll , followed by Ron Paul with 9% and Newt Gingrich at 6%. That's a gain of 17 points for Romney since last month—and a loss of 6 points for Santorum. Romney has even made gains in Santorum-leaning groups including evangelicals, tea partiers, and the "very conservative." Many see Pennsylvania as make-or-break for Santorum . More»

Mitt Romney sweeps primaries, but Rick Santorum not going anywhere

(NEWSER) - Mitt Romney scored a hat trick, winning all three of yesterday's primaries in Wisconsin, Maryland, and the District of Columbia. CNN and Politico each offer five takeaways:

• Wisconsin rejected Rick Santorum: It was Santorum's last shot at winning a Midwestern state , and he ignored Maryland in order to hit what CNN calls the "bowling alley-and-cheese curd circuit" in Wisconsin. It didn't work: His typical supporters, including evangelicals, tea partiers, and the "very conservative," voted for Romney anyway.
• Even so, he's not going anywhere: Despite the fact that many seemed to believe a Wisconsin loss would mean the end for Santorum, he's still focused on denying Romney the magic number of 1,144 delegates—and, for the time being, he still has a path to do so.

But Obama leads Romney in general election polling

(NEWSER) - Mitt Romney leads Rick Santorum 40% to 33% in Wisconsin, according to a new NBC News-Marist poll . Ron Paul follows in third with 11% and Newt Gingrich is last with 8%. Romney leads the way with moderate and liberal Republicans, conservatives, and those earning more than $75,000 per year. Santorum, however, leads with very conservative voters, evangelical Christians, and Tea Party supporters. More»

Mitt Romney, Rick Santorum both need this

(NEWSER) - Having failed to seal up the nomination in yesterday's Southern primaries , it's all about Illinois now for Mitt Romney. That state's Tuesday primary is the next big one, though Missouri will hold caucuses Saturday and Puerto Rico holds its primary Sunday. Politico calls Illinois "the new Michigan. And, for that matter, the new Ohio." Romney won both of those states and needs to make it three-for-three in the big Midwestern primaries. Right now, things are looking good for him—unlike in Michigan and Ohio, Romney is actually ahead in the Illinois polls, though not by much, the Washington Post reports. More»

Alabama, Mississippi primaries could seal the deal for Romney

(NEWSER) - Today's primaries in Mississippi and Alabama are playing an unexpectedly pivotal role in the GOP presidential race. What to keep an eye on, per NPR and Politico :

• Will Mitt finally win in the South? He's failed to take any of the southern states so far, but he's polling well in both Alabama and Mississippi. Will today be the day he proves he can compete in the famously conservative region? Both states veer particularly sharply to the right, so both Newt Gingrich and Rick Santorum really want to beat Romney here to burnish their conservative bona fides.
• Will Newt lose in the South? Gingrich has called both states must-win for him; in order to stay in the race, he'll likely have to win at least one and perform well in the other.