ALL TIMES CENTRAL
11:38 PM: FOXNews just now calls Ohio for Romney. A call that is not a surprise.
11:37: It is now Wednesday on the Atlantic Seaboard, and in the final hour of Tuesday in the Central Time Zone, and two states are still yet to be decided, but we do have several takeaways from tonight:
-This race continues on with all four candidates still soldering on.
-Regardless of the outcome in Ohio, Romney continues to appear weak, and that could certainly
hurt him in the upcoming primaries and caucuses where particularly Santorum and to a lesser
extent Gingrich appeal to many.
-Regardless of his huge victory in Georgia, Gingrich had a particularly tough night. He fell to 3rd
in Tennessee and Oklahoma, states in which he thought he had a strong shot. He also barely
registered support in Mass., N.D., Idaho and Vt. In Ohio, his support rests only in the upper
teens of percent. Super Tuesday was a critical opportunity at a turning point for him, and it
did not materialize. He would seem to have a final shot next Tuesday with Ala., Miss. and Kan.,
but Santorum also looks good in those states. The Gingrich campaign is probably at life support
right now.
11:05 PM: 91% of precincts in at Ohio, and Romney is on top with a slim lead of approx. 6,000 votes or a single percent.
9:25 PM: Now 71% of precincts in Ohio, and it is still 38% for Santorum, Romney with 36%. Santorum wins three states on the night, Romney also three, and Gingrich takes Ga. Gingrich has really suffered a tough night though with a distant 3rd in Tennessee, a crucial state for him, and potentially 3rd in Oklahoma, another state he was counting on. He is also drawing low single-digit numbers in the caucus states of North Dakota and Idaho and not even 20% in Ohio. Paul also will probably end the night missing his likely last shot to have any state wins. Romney up strong in Idaho right now and will probably claim the state has his 4th win of the night.
9:10 PM: BREAKING: CNN calls North Dakota for Santorum!
9:04 PM: Romney projected to win 2nd in Tennessee...Gingrich will fall in 3rd here and could fall in 3rd in Oklahoma. This marks a tough night for the one-time frontrunner although he wins huge in Georgia.
9:00 PM: With 58% of precincts in on the state of Ohio, Santorum still leads Romney by a count of 38% to 36%. Tight as a tick in the bellwether Buckeye State!
8:58 PM: Now 62% of precincts in on North Dakota and still the same numbers between Santorum and Paul (39%-27%). We are getting closer to a decided result there.
8:55 PM: Tweet from political analyst Nate Silver: "Pretty sure Santorum is a slight favorite in Ohio. He's maybe ~60%-70% likely to win."
8:50 PM: With 54% of precincts in for North Dakota, Santorum holds 39% of the vote to Paul's 27%. Looking like a two-person race for the conservative state in the northern part of the Great Plains!
8:47 PM: Watching North Dakota particularly close along with Ohio. Rick leads N.D. with 40% of the vote and Romney and Paul closely battling for 2nd, both with approx. 25% of the vote each. It will likely get closer through the night.
8:30 PM: With 33% of precincts in, Santorum leads Ohio with 39% of the vote to Romney's 36%. I predict when all is said and done, Rick wins by 2% of the vote in the Buckeye State. I make that call based on everything I am seeing and hearing there.
8:24 PM: This night is going to be bigger for the Santorum camp than the media have been predicting as of late, and it will be a tough night for Newt. Looks like this goes on officially now as a two-person race.
8:22 PM: A jubilant Santorum rally in Steubenville, Ohio after huge wins in Tennessee and Oklahoma, and things looking very promising in the Buckeye State of Ohio according to some analysts. North Dakota also looks good early on with Rick currently sitting at half the vote with 6% of precincts in. Side Note: Steubenville is the native city of legendary and all-time great singer Dean Martin!
8:19 PM: LIVE ON ALL NEWS NETWORKS: Rick Santorum in a victory speech from Santorum HQ in Steubenville, Ohio.
