In results certified Monday, Mitt Romney won the Nevada GOP caucus handily with 50 percent of the vote. Newt Gingrich came in second with 21 percent, followed by Ron Paul with 19 percent and Rick Santorum with 10 percent.
Although the results were released nearly two days after voters cast their ballots, there was hardly any suspense left as Romney’s lead was evident from preliminary counts Saturday by the state's Republican Party.
Now the GOP presidential race focuses on three contests Tuesday: the non-binding Missouri primary and caucuses in Minnesota and Colorado.
The only thing able to stop Romney, flush with cash and gaining momentum as the weeks progress, may be President Obama himself, who edged the former Massachusetts governor in a poll released Monday.
"There are 17 primaries and caucuses in the next 30 days, and the map is lining up very well for Mitt Romney because here's the bottom line: Everybody knows he's got the best chance to beat President Obama," Virginia Republican Gov. Bob McDonnell said Sunday on CNN's "State of the Union."
Newt Gingrich stays on the attack
The former House Speaker, appearing on two Sunday talk shows, says his campaign is focused on the long haul: Super Tuesday on March 6, when 10 political contests will have more than 400 delegates up for grabs.
"Our goal is to get to Super Tuesday, where we're in much more favorable territory," Gingrich said on the NBC's "Meet the Press."
“My goal over the next few weeks is to draw very sharp distinctions between [mine and] Romney’s positions, which are very, the Wall Street Journal described them as timid, and in terms of tax policy, as being like Obama,” Gingrich said.
He will have his work cut out for him. Romney has blasted his political record and used Gingrich's own comments -- specifically a plan for colonies on the moon, which SLN spoofed Saturday -- against him.
Rick Santorum stumps in Minnesota on eve of vote
Santorum spent Sunday on the campaign trail in Minnesota, where he displayed a confident air about his presidential chances. "I think we're going to do very well here in Minnesota," he told a crowd, Fox News reported. "I think we're going to do very well in Colorado, and we've got a one-on-one match up against Mitt Romney in Missouri, while there's no delegates, it is a key state, it is a primary. And we think we can do exceptionally well in the state of Missouri."
He continued: "I think we're going to show improvement. This race is a long, long way from being over.”
Ron Paul vows to fight on
Paul's third-place finish in Nevada has bolstered the Texas congressman's campaign. He has outraised front-runner Romney in 10 states, according to Smart Politics.
Speaking Sunday to George Stephanopoulos on ABC's "This Week," Paul said it's too early to talk about conceding the GOP race. "The first thing you want to achieve is get as many votes as you can and get as many delegates and set your target high," he said. "And, of course, you set it for victory, but you have to live within the real world."
Paul said he wasn't worried about continued attacks on Romney, the GOP's leading candidate, damaging the Republican Party. "I worry about myself," he said on "This Week". "I worry about the message. I worry about the country. I worry about the wars going on. I worry about the economy in the real sense of what it's like to have runaway inflation."
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