Des Moines, Iowa (dpa) – The top two Republican candidates in the opening contest of the US presidential race sprinted to a photo finish Tuesday evening. Former former Pennsylvania senator Rich Santorum and former Massachusetts governor Mitt Romney were deadlocked at 25 percent of the vote, with 99 percent of results counted in the Iowa caucuses, launching the Republican Party's process to pick a challenger to President Barack Obama. In a close third was Texas Congressman Ron Paul at 21 percent. Santorum, who had come from far behind in the pack of Republicans seeking support in Iowa, was four votes ahead of Romney. Santorum practically lived in the state for most of 2011, visiting all 99 of Iowa's counties to make a persistent appeal to the state's large bloc of evangelical Christian voters. Santorum thanked Iowans for propelling his campaign even while he was running in the low single digits in opinion polls just weeks ago. He acknowledged that political analysts see Romney as more likely to defeat Obama in the November general elections, but insisted he has broader appeal. “What wins in America are bold ideas, sharp contrasts and a plan that includes everyone,” Santorum said, outlining his policies, “a plan that includes people from all across the economic spectrum, a plan that says we will get America to work.” Iowa political analyst David Yepsen noted that Santorum had already won momentum just by rising so quickly, polling near the bottom of the field for most of the last year. “This could be the start of his political comeback,” Yepsen said earlier Tuesday. By finishing among the top three, Santorum “will be seen as the new leader of social conservatives in the Republican Party, and … that will make him a force for some time to come,” Yepsen said. The front-running Romney campaign had sought to downplay expectations in Iowa, investing little time and money in the state until a few weeks ago, when he and his supporters began buying a massive volume of television spots that portray him as having a clear conservative agenda. As a result, his strong finish was, likewise, seen as a victory. Romney congratulated both Santorum and Paul for their strong Iowa results. “This is a campaign night where America wins,” said Romney, flanked by his wife and sons. “We're going to win the White House and get America back on track.” Romney did poorly in Iowa in 2008, when he first sought the conservative party's presidential nod. Then-nominee Senator John McCain was trounced by Obama, who is unopposed for renomination by the Democratic Party and would face the 2012 Republican pick in the November general elections. The scene in precincts across the state reflected the tight race. At a high school in Des Moines, where some 80 people gathered to caucus, Romney and Paul each drew around 20 votes, followed closely by Santorum, who did well even without a local representative to speak to the meeting on his behalf. Paul, a standardbearer for the party's libertarian wing – free market, socially liberal and opposed to US foreign intervention – had developed a committed following among young voters who turn out in droves for him at campaign rallies. His supporters were among the most enthusiastic in the caucus format, which involves meetings in local election precincts rather than quick ballot-urn voting. Supporters of the candidates can give speeches and work to sway their neighbors before party members choose delegates to county conventions. At one Des Moines caucus site, where a pro-Paul speech drew the most applause, his message was described simply as, “Leave us alone, and we will live well.” Paul himself declared the result a victory for his ideas. “We're reintroducing some ideas the Republicans have needed for a long time, and that is the conviction that freedom is popular,” Paul told supporters. BM ShortURL: http://goo.gl/09uI8 Tags: Caucuses, Iowa, Mitt Romney, Republicans, Rick Santorum Section: Latest News, North America
