Mitt Romney caucuses

The Nevada Republican caucuses were held on Saturday, February 4. Less than 33,000 Republican tooks part in the Nevada caucuses which proportionally awards 28 Republican delegates. Romney won 50% of the caucus-goers, followed by Gingrich at 21%, Paul at 19%, and Santorum at 10%. Romney won 14 delegates, whereas Gingrich, Paul, and Santorum were awarded 6, 5, and 3 delegates respectively.


Colorado, Minnesota, and Missouri
Rival candidate Rick Santorum surprised observers by winning all the three of the states holding votes on February 7. Romney lost to the former Pennsylvania Senator by 5 points in the Colorado caucus, finished third with 17% behind Ron Paul and Santorum in the Minnesota caucuses, and, in a contest that did not actually award any delegates and did not include Newt Gingrich on the ballot, lost the Missouri primary to Santorum by a 30 point margin.

Romney was initially declared the narrow winner of the Maine Caucus, but the results are now subject to a recount after several counties were not counted.


Michigan and Arizona
Michigan and Arizona held their Presidential primaries on Tuesday, February 28, and allocated 29 and 30 Republican delegates, respectively. CNN moderated a Republican primary debate in Mesa, Arizona on February 22, 2012. The Arizona Republican primary is ‘winner-take-all’ and the Michigan Republican delegate results are allocated proportionately among the candidates by voting district. 


Washington state
The state of Washington held their caucuses on Saturday, March 3, with Mitt Romney gaining momentum going into 'Super Tuesday'. Their delegate vote at convention will be finalized later.


Super Tuesday
The largest number of states in the Republican Primary race voted on March 6, 2012, with Romney winning six states (Alaska, Idaho, Massachusetts, Ohio, Vermont, Virginia); Santorum winning three states (North Dakota, Oklahoma, Tennessee); and Gingrich winning Georgia.


Financial strain
After his twin losses in Alabama and Mississippi, Romney was forced to return to fundraising, cut back on campaign expenses and switch to using more free media appearances.


Presumptive presidential nominee


With Santorum dropping out of the race in April, 2012, Romney set a new record for the least popular presumptive presidential nominee in polling history.

In the absence of likely alternatives to Romney for the Republican nomination, polls showed Romney gaining on Obama's earlier double-digit lead in a hypothetical head-to-head general election contest. However, polls (both nationally and in battleground states like Florida and Ohio) also showed that for most of those who said they would vote for Romney, the primary motivator was hostility toward Obama rather than affirmative support for Romney.