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SALT LAKE CITY -- Following her poor performance at the Iowa Caucuses on Tuesday, Rep. Michele Bachmann suspended her presidential campaign Wednesday morning, becoming the first casualty of the 2012 election season.
It was an exciting race to the finish for candidates Mitt Romney and Rick Santorum, stretching into the early hours of the morning, with Romney winning Iowa by an eight-vote margin. But now the presidential candidates have New Hampshire on their minds.
Romney is banking on support from former Republican presidential candidate John McCain, who endorsed his campaign Wednesday morning in New Hampshire. Former Utah Gov. Jon Huntsman skipped Iowa entirely and has based his entire campaign in New Hampshire, hoping for a major upset after trailing significantly in national polls.
"Iowa is significant because those who win, or perceived to be winning, can then expect free media as well as quick campaign contributions," said political science professor Tim Chambless of the University of Utah.
For Romney, finishing at or near the top wasn't a surprise for many; however, the rise of Santorum shocked many political observers. Iowa voters appeared to not be impressed with their presidential candidate choices, choosing Santorum as their "not-Romney" candidate, which will likely help his campaign in the following primaries and caucuses.
For Santorum, it is a huge lift. Because there was a guy -- ‘Mr. Irrelevant' -- for 11 months, and now he has a very nice ticket out of Iowa. Whether he has anything left is a big question.
–Kirk Jowers
"For Santorum, it is a huge lift," said Kirk Jowers, Director of the Hinckley Institute of Politics. "Because there was a guy -- ‘Mr. Irrelevant' -- for 11 months, and now he has a very nice ticket out of Iowa. Whether he has anything left is a big question."
The Iowa caucuses started the process of reducing the number of Republican candidates, with more likely to be gone after next Tuesday's primary in New Hampshire, which leaves the well-organized and experienced candidates moving forward.
"Romney has learned from the first campaign," Jowers said. "The way the REpublicans have set this up is for the long haul, and Romney is ready for the long haul. He's already running ads in Florida."
Surprises are still likely in the early stages of the presidential campaign, particularly with Santorum taking a quick rise and Huntsman campaigning solely in New Hampshire. If history is any indication of the eventual Republican nominee, winning the two early campaigns do not necessarily guarantee an eventual victory.
"We see that the only Republican candidate who's won both Iowa and New Hampshire and gone ahead and won the Republican nomination for president was in 1976 with Gerald Ford," Chambless said.
A minimum of 1,144 delegates are needed to win the Republican nomination this year. But the way the GOP nominating process is set up, it could take a while before an eventual nominee is selected.
Email: kmccord@ksl.com
