It wasn't even close: Mitt Romney won a "landslide" victory in Florida's GOP presidential primary on Tuesday. With 74 percent of the precincts reporting, Romney led with almost 47 percent of the vote, well ahead of Newt Gingrich's 32 percent. Rick Santorum and Ron Paul lagged behind with 13 percent and 7 percent, respectively. After getting shellacked by Gingrich in South Carolina's Jan. 21 primary, Romney got tough in Florida, pummeling Newt in two debates and burying his chief rival under a mountain of negative ads (over 12,000, in the last week alone). As the Republican presidential race heads to the Romney-friendly Nevada caucuses on Saturday, what should we make of Mitt's Florida victory?
Mitt got his groove back: "Romney is firmly back in the frontrunner's seat," says Maggie Astor at International Business Times. Yes, only four states have voted. But let's get real: Romney now has several advantages that make it all but impossible for anyone to catch up: "An 'electable' image, strong organization, and almost unlimited money." Florida was "the first test of the candidates' ability to appeal to many demographics at once, and in turn their ability to be competitive on the national stage." With his decisive win in this crucial general-election swing state, Romney just offered "the strongest statement yet that he alone holds the electability card."
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