Newt Gingrich upset GOP frontrunner Mitt Romney in South Carolina tonight, beating him by what will likely be a comfortable margin in the the state’s Republican presidential primary.
This marks the second state lost by Romney in past less than 24 hours, as the Iowa Republican party officially declared at midnight Friday that Rick Santorum had won the state’s caucus. Meanwhile, Santorum put up a disappointing showing in South Carolina, according to CNN exiting polls, with 20 percent of evangelicals voters supporting him — fewer even that Romney.
Newt Gingrich now heads into Florida — a state where he was once up 40 points over Romney — with a head of steam. “Thank you SC! Help me deliver the knockout punch in Florida,” Gingrich tweeted. But despite its large population, a win in Florida will not mean as much as Gingirch might hope since the state lost half of its nominating delegates to the Republican National Convention because it changed its primary date without authorization.
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