Republican candidate Mitt Romney edged ahead of former Sen. Rick Santorum for a critical win in the swing state of Ohio.
Yet, Santorum’s Super Tuesday wins are fueling questions about the strength of Romney’s presidential campaign.
Voters in 10 states weighed in on the race for the Republican presidential nomination. Santorum nabbed three key victories—Tennessee, North Dakota and Oklahoma—and gave the former Massachusetts governor a run for his money in Ohio.
In the end, Romney won 38 percent of the Ohio’s votes—only 1 percent over Santorum.
With 419 delegates at stake, the four GOP candidates were hoping for a good showing in at least one state.
As expected, Romney won Massachusetts with more than 70 percent of the vote. He also took Virginia, Idaho, Vermont and Alaska.
“You have not failed, you have a president that has failed you and that is going to change,” Romney told supporters Tuesday night. “We’re doing some counting. We’re counting up the delegates for the convention and that looks good. And we’re counting down the days until November and that looks even better.”
Meanwhile, Santorum won big in Tennessee, where voters are mostly conservative. He also continued his southern streak, winning Oklahoma with 34 percent of the vote. Romney placed second with 28 percent.
“This was a big night tonight, lots of states. We’re going to win a few and we’re going to lose a few, but as it looks right now we’re going to get at least a few gold medals and a whole lot of silver medals,” Sanotrum said while votes were still being tallied Tuesday.
“We are in this thing not because I so badly want to be the most powerful man in this country. It’s because I want so badly to return the power to you in this country,” he added.
Former House Speaker Newt Gingrich earned a critical victory in his home state of Georgia with 48 percent of the vote. Romney, again, placed second.
Although he didn’t give as much competition as anticipated, Gingrich made it clear he plans to stick around.
“I want you to know that in the morning, we’re going on to Alabama, we’re going on to Mississippi, we’re going on to Kansas, and that’s just this week,” Gingrich told supporters in Atlanta.
As precinct after precinct closed Tuesday, Rep. Ron Paul seemed to be headed toward a winless night.
Paul had his best showings in the North Dakota caucuses and Vermont primary, where he placed second. Still, his third run for the White House continues to slow down.
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