MSNBC - Newt Gingrich has won the South Carolina Republican primary, capping
off a remarkable comeback for his presidential bid that reshapes the
trajectory of the battle for the GOP nomination.
Based on early
exit polls, NBC News projects Gingrich as the winner of the primary,
while former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney will finish second.
The
results mark the end of a tumultuous week in politics that saw Gingrich
erase and then overcome the lead Romney had in the Palmetto State
following his victory in the Jan. 10 New Hampshire primary. Gingrich
came on strong in the closing days of the campaign, looking to rally
under his banner the many conservatives unwilling to get behind Romney,
who had sought to posture himself as the eventual nominee.
Gingrich's performance in South Carolina was driven in thanks to late
deciders, who broke decisively in his direction in the last few days of
the campaign. That stretch saw two debate performances by Gingrich, on
Monday and Thursday nights. Almost two-thirds of voters said the debates
were an important factor in their decision, and Gingrich won about half
of them.
More broadly, core elements of the GOP base in South
Carolina – conservatives, Tea Party supporters and evangelical
Christians – broke for Gingrich. And the former speaker even edged
Romney in two important constituencies for the former Massachusetts
governor: voters who said electability in November was their most
important concern in a nominee, and voters who said the economy was
their top issue.
The results upset the conventional wisdom in the
race, which had set expectations for Romney to score a knockout blow
against his competitors with a win in the Palmetto State.
Gingrich's
victory reshapes the race, at a minimum extending the primary contest
through the Jan. 31 primary in Florida. The South Carolina results
underscore Romney's lingering inability to overcome skepticism from
conservatives about electing him as their standard-bearer against
President Obama this fall.
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