Final Round Set for Parties in South Carolina House Race

María Belén Chapur’s appearance was a surprise, especially to leaders in the national Republican Party. It might not have been the most strategic move in Mr. Sanford’s attempt at a political comeback. Still, it was how Mr. Sanford wanted it.

Whether national Republican leaders will decide that the former governor is putting the seat in jeopardy and decide to lend more support is only one question in a race that has already been filled with political and personal drama. After defeating 15 other candidates in a primary race and winning a runoff on Tuesday, Mr. Sanford faces Elizabeth Colbert Busch, a Democrat with enough celebrity appeal and financial backing to change what could have been an easy victory in the special election on May 7 into a real battle.

“Everybody is really concerned because she’s not a bad-looking lady, she is a good speaker and she’s got some money,” said Jerry Hallman, chairman of the Beaufort County Republican Party. “In politics, those things are important.”

The seat became vacant after Senator Jim DeMint announced in December that he was stepping down to take over the Heritage Foundation. Gov. Nikki R. Haley appointed Representative Tim Scott to replace him, opening up the Congressional seat that Mr. Sanford held before he became governor.

Gender, fidelity and experience are already shaping up as themes in the district, which includes Charleston, Hilton Head and some Low Country farmland. Mr. Sanford began his campaign as a kind of apology tour, explaining he had learned much about humility after leaving the governor’s office in 2011, having lied about a trip to Argentina to visit Ms. Chapur. Mr. Sanford said he was hiking the Appalachian Trail. Although he finished his term, he faced ethics fines, censure by his party and divorce from his wife of 21 years, Jenny.

Now, he has gone on the offensive, portraying himself as a seasoned fiscal hawk in a race against a political neophyte whose most notable credential is her celebrity family. Ms. Colbert Busch’s younger brother is the comedian Stephen Colbert, who has been active in her campaign.

Already the national Republican Party, though not committing to using heavy artillery in the race, is painting Ms. Colbert Busch as too liberal for a district that voted for Mitt Romney in the presidential primary. (Newt Gingrich won the state over all.)

“So far, Elizabeth Colbert Busch has yet to answer any real questions about why she supports President Obama’s failed policies,” said Katie Prill, a spokeswoman for the National Republican Congressional Committee. “She might be the gem of the Beltway and Hollywood liberals, but South Carolinians are going to be sorely disappointed the more they learn about her.”

Ms. Colbert Busch is leaning on her years as a maritime executive and at Clemson University, where she is leading an effort to develop the state’s wind power industry. She is also relying on several women in Congress, among them Senator Kirsten E. Gillibrand, the New York Democrat, who began using Twitter to seek donations to the campaign.

Democratic leaders realize the race must be run without error, with special attention paid to women and moderate Republicans who remember Mr. Sanford’s rocky relationship with the Legislature when he was in office and, of course, his affair.

But the national organization probably won’t make a move until the other side does.

“This is a Republican seat in a Republican district, so we’ll wait and see what the Republicans do,” said Jesse Ferguson of the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee. Hesaid national Republican organization might not be eager to get involved.

“Having Mark Sanford as the face of the party is probably not the best thing for a party trying to rehabilitate itself with women voters,” he said.

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Newt Gingrich Shakes Up Things With South Carolina Win (ContributorNetwork)

COMMENTARY | What a day for South Carolina. Every four years presidential hopefuls try their hardest to win the first in the South primary because every Republican candidate that has gone on to win the White House has won the South Carolina primary initially. If you find yourself in South Carolina during this time you will hear one phrase repeatedly: South Carolina picks presidents.

Armed with an array of television ads, various endorsements and thousands of miles traveled, Mitt Romney, Newt Gingrich, Rick Santorum and Ron Paul fought for the endorsement and delegates of the Palmetto State. While the candidates strategy included a few jabs at each other, they were unified in the belief that President Barack Obama needed to lose his job and that push would be reaffirmed in a state suffering from a 9.9 percent unemployment rate. In a complete rebuttal of the Republican establishment, Gingrich won the Palmetto State, according to the New York Times.

While pundits and media hosts responded to his win as a surprise, voters contributed Gingrich's win to his debate performance, winability and being the conservative alternative to Romney. What is remarkable is Gingrich won the counties where he was projected to come in second and third -- mainly on the coast. He carried the powerful Evangelical, military and Catholic vote.

Romney's loss is contributed to voters' concerns about Romneycare and his moderate-leaning record. Rick Santorum came in third and Ron Paul at a distant fourth. For Santorum and Paul, their respective placing is not as big of a blow as it is to the Romney camp.

South Carolina's primary has added a new dimension to the candidates campaign. This primary shows there is no clear Republican nominee and that we are in for a long primary season.

In Romney's own words, "This debate is getting even more interesting." Gingrich's win is a forthright message to the GOP establishment. Conservatives aren't happy and the GOP needs to stop bending to the whims of the fringe elite concerning social issues, immigration and fiscal policy.

The Republicans have work to do, but the Obama campaign will now have to work even harder. Instead of having time to prepare for one front-runner candidate, President Barack Obama will have to prepare for two polar opposite candidates. I close with my favorite quote of the night. After the primary Santorum said, "Three states, three winners, what a great country."

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Gingrich Wins the South Carolina Primary (ContributorNetwork)

COMMENTARY | The results were overwhelming for Newt Gingrich in the South Carolina primary, according to the New York Times. The people of South Carolina rallied around the American flag, showing they wanted to take America back to a direction of patriotism that our forefathers once dreamed it could be, not toward a socialized nation like the Europeans have, that just is not America. Gingrich won 40 percent of the votes and Mitt Romney received 27 percent, while Rick Santorum came in third with 17 percent and Ron Paul with 10 percent.

Some in the media said, with an ex-wife coming out against the former speaker, he never stood a chance with women voters. He received a whopping 58 percent in favor when a poll where women were asked if they let a past infidelity change their decision about the former Speaker of the House. Gingrich showed America that he stands for America, and it shows on every face of every American who voted for the man.

Many in the media are also saying Romney stumbled when he was flip-flopping on his tax issues. When asked when he will release his tax statement for 2010, he said he did not know or he will or he won't. People are suspect when they think someone has something to hide. All politicians should be an open book or else, they will fall by the wayside fast.

The people of South Carolina have spoken. Many said they did not care about problems that happened with candidates years ago, they are concerned with now. The voters polled at various precincts were not concerned with domestic rhetoric with politicians personal lives or financial concerns, but were concerned with the direction of this country.

The voter turnout was higher than 2008 by at least 100,000 votes, which is a wonderful thing. It shows Americans are doing their civic duty and using their rights as Americans. The feeling this time was a patriotic one by most of the voters.

The amount of cheering and flag waving I have seen is addictive as patriotism is alive and well in the South. It is off to the Sunshine State in 10 days to see who comes out ahead. We have a long way to go in this, but the infectious pride of being American is spreading thanks to the final four.

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What You Missed While Not Watching the Last South Carolina GOP Debate (Time.com)

0 minutes. The CNN spaceship is set to launch, with blue gels on the lights that give the auditorium an alien aquarium vibe. It's the 17th GOP debate of 2012 cycle. Roll the intro montage: "Welcome to the South, the heart of the Republican Party," says the hokey disembodied voice, doing his best imitation of a Stephen Colbert send up, "where tradition lives and values matter." What? Do Iowa and New Hampshire not care about tradition and values? Nonsense. But we push on. We are veterans. We have learned to let the silly slide.

2 minutes. Each candidate gets a shout out. Former Massachusetts governor Mitt Romney is "the frontrunner." Texas Rep. Ron Paul is "the insurgent." Rick Santorum has "renewed momentum," though recent polls show it is in the wrong direction. Newt Gingrich is "on the rise." Then each of the men take the stage with their variation of a high school dweeb strut. Romney is third, and the most talkative. "Hi guys," he says to the others. "Newt," he says shaking Gingrich's hand. "Ha ha," he says, because perhaps it is funny to be shaking Gingrich's hand. "And then there were four," he adds, because that is all that remain. (See "What You Missed While Not Watching the Final Iowa Debate.")

5 minutes. CNN pomp is unending, as usual. After Twitter and Facebook mentions, some military cadets sing the national anthem. The crowd turns to a flat-screen projection of Old Glory. "That was fabulous. Absolutely fabulous," CNN host John King says afterward. One day the debate will start. Then he asks the candidates to make short opening statements. For those who speak Republican, this means brag about your brood.

7 minutes. Santorum begins, noting his "wife Karen and our seven children." He also thanks Iowa "for a little delayed but most welcome victory there." Romney beats Santorum, not in Iowa, but in brood count. "I'm married now 42 years. I have five sons, five daughters-in-law, 16 grandkids, and they're the joy of my life." The married-a-long-time thing is a knock on thrice-married Gingrich, though Romney would probably swear to his grave that this is not true. Gingrich eschews brood stats for geographic pandering. "As a Georgian, it feels good to be back at home in the South," he says. Paul mentions that he has been elected to Congress 12 times, 30 years as an obstetrician, and "I'm the only U.S. veteran on this stage tonight." (See "What You Missed While Not Watching the GOP National-Security Debate.")

9 minutes. Finally a question, and it's a doozy. Would Gingrich like to respond to his second wife's claim that he wanted an open marriage more than a decade ago? "No, but I will," he says, looking ornery. The crowd likes his attitude. "I am appalled that you would begin a presidential debate on a topic like that." The crowd is on its feet applauding. "To take an ex-wife and make it two days before the primary a significant question for a presidential campaign is as close to despicable as anything I can imagine." The place is going nuts. Gingrich goes on for a while. Then he adds, as if it no longer matters, "The story is false."

11 minutes. Gingrich is still going. "I am tired of the elite media protecting Barack Obama by attacking Republicans." A second standing ovation. If being President only required an ability to rile the public into rage against the press, America wouldn't need an election. There would be a coronation.

12 minutes. King asks Santorum if this open marriage/mistress stuff is an issue. Santorum says yes, as softly as he can. "These are issues of our lives and what we did in our lives," he says. "They are issues of character for people to consider."

13 minutes. Romney won't go there. "John, let's get on to the real issues is all I've got to say." The crowd likes that too.

14 minutes. Paul uses his turn at the Gingrich mistress plate to say media corporations are bad. "What about the corporations that run the media?" he asks, before joining in the media's attack by adding apropos of nothing in particular that he has been married 54 years.

15 minutes. New topic. Unemployment. Name three things you would do to help reduce it. Paul says "sound currency," less regulations and near-zero income taxes. Gingrich says repeal Dodd-Frank, increase domestic oil and gas exploration, and radically overhaul the Corps of Engineers.

18 minutes. King follows up by asking Gingrich to attack Romney for his work at Bain Capital. Gingrich indulges, describing "Bain Capital's model, which was to take over a company and dramatically leverage it, leave it with a great deal of debt, made it less likely to survive."

19 minutes. Romney is asked to respond, and attacks Obama. "You've got to stop the spread of crony capitalism. He gives General Motors to the UAW. He takes $500 million and sticks it into Solyndra. He -- he stacks the labor stooges on the NLRB so they can say no to Boeing and take care of their friends in the labor movement," he says. The crowd rewards the Obama bashing with applause.

20 minutes. King persists on Bain, asking Romney to explain how he comes up with the figure of 120,000 jobs created at the firm. Romney says that is what four companies he started now employ. "I'm someone who believes in free enterprise," he continues. "I think Adam Smith was right. And I'm going to stand and defend capitalism across this country, throughout this campaign." Then he turns it up a notch. "I know we're going to get hit hard from President Obama, but we're going to stuff it down his throat and point out it is capitalism and freedom that makes America strong." The foie gras attack.

22 minutes. Santorum distinguishes between regular capitalism and the "high finance" of Romney. "We need a party that just doesn't talk about high finance and cutting corporate taxes or cutting the top tax rates," Santorum says. "We need to talk about how we're going to put men and women in this country, who built this country, back to work in this country in the manufacturing sector of our economy." He's the Joe Biden of the GOP. Pure Scranton.

24 minutes. Talk about the challenges faced by returning military veterans. Everyone on stage is concerned. Paul says he worries about the high rate of suicide. Santorum says there should be job preferences. Romney says he wants the states to do much of the work. Gingrich says cut taxes and help veterans with a program like the G.I. Bill after World War II.

31 minutes. Question on ObamaCare. Romney says repeal it and replace it with something "like a market, a consumer market, as opposed to have it run like Amtrak and the post office." This is not an accurate description of how ObamaCare works, but let it slide. Move on. Gingrich says he'd "repeal all of it because I so deeply distrust the congressional staffs that I would not want them to be able to pick and choose which things they cut." By this logic, congressional staff would never get to do any legislating. But let it slide. Move on. (See "What You Missed While Not Watching the CNBC 'Oops' Republican Debate.")

35 minutes. Santorum uses this opportunity to attack both Romney and Gingrich for once supporting the individual mandate in ObamaCare. He calls Romney's health reforms in Massachusetts "an abject disaster." Romney objects. "First of all, the system in my state is not a government-run system," he says. This is true, but it is kind of funny to hear Romney say it, since he just mischaracterized ObamaCare as a "government-run system." Let it slide. Move on.

39 minutes. They go back and forth for a while, covering old ground. At one point, Romney does another "Ha ha," to express condescension at the attacks on him. When it comes around to Gingrich, he changes the subject by saying, again, that he wants 3-hour debates with Obama. "I will let him use a teleprompter. I would just rely on knowledge. We'll do fine." A real crowd-pleaser that Gingrich.

42 minutes. After more needling from Santorum, Gingrich admits he was wrong about the individual mandate.

43 minutes. Paul finally gets a chance to talk again. He says government should not be involved in medicine. Then he pivots to a discussion about why U.S. military bases overseas are bad, as are recent military adventures.

45 minutes. That brings us to the first break. Before cutting to commercial, King says Gingrich has released his tax returns while the candidates have been on stage. Nice trick. Can we expect gimics like this in future debates?

49 minutes. We're back. King promptly gets Gingrich and Santorum fighting again. "Grandiosity has never been a problem with Newt Gingrich," Santorum says. "I don't want a nominee that I have to worry about going out and looking at the paper the next day and worrying about what he's going to say next." That is a line taken almost word-for-word from the Romney campaign. Then Santorum says he finished ahead of Gingrich in New Hampshire, which is not true. Gingrich got 49 more votes. Nonetheless, Santorum accuses Gingrich of having "not cogent thoughts."

53 minutes. Gingrich responds by listing pretty much everything good that happened during his two decade run in the U.S. House. Then he says, "I think grandiose thoughts. This is a grandiose country of big people doing big things." Applause of course. More tit for tat follows. But no more fancy words like grandiose.

56 minutes. Romney tries to chime in by saying that this squabbling just shows he's the outsider who can fix Washington. But Romney does it really awkwardly, describing himself as someone "who's lived in the real streets of America." Not clear if he is referring to the old family mansion in Belmont, Mass., or the beach house in La Jolla, Calif., or the Deer Valley, Utah, lodge he once owned. Or maybe another "real street" he has yet to disclose. In the middle of the answer, Romney gets lost. Then he finds his way, and attacks Gingrich for not really having as much to do with Ronald Reagan as he claims. "You're mentioned once in Ronald Reagan's diary," Romney says.

58 minutes. Gingrich shoots back. "You did very well under the rules that we created to make it easier for entrepreneurs to go out and do things," he says to Romney. "I don't recall a single day saying, 'Oh, thank heavens Washington is there for me,'" Romney responds.

59 minutes. Question for Paul. Will he release his tax returns? "I'd probably be embarrassed to put my financial statement up against their income," he jokes of the others on the stage.

60 minutes. Romney cleans up his big mistake from the last debate, and says he will release his tax returns in April. Then, as he always does when uncomfortable, he attacks Obama. "You've got a President who's played 90 rounds of golf while there are 25 million Americans out of work," Romney says.

63 minutes. Santorum says he will release his returns as soon as he gets home and prints them off his computer.

64 minutes. King asks Romney if he will release 12 years of his tax returns, like his father George Romney did when he ran in 1968. Romney smiles at the mention of his father, but doesn't answer the question. "Maybe," he says, as the crowd starts to boo. "You know, I don't know how many years I'll release."

66 minutes. King asks a question premised on the fact that the best example of American corporate success at the moment, Apple Inc., has 500,000 employees in China and much fewer in the United States. This allows Santorum to get another Joe Biden riff going about revitalizing American manufacturing. Paul sees the question as an opportunity to deliver an economics lesson on the benefits of trade. Then Paul and Santorum bicker about Santorum's one-time aversion to a national right-to-work bill.

71 minutes. King asks a question about the recent bills in Congress that would put new restrictions on websites to protect intellectual property. He also discloses that CNN's parent company, Time Warner, which is also TIME's parent company, is a big supporter of these bills. The mention of the corporate monster responsible for The Hangover II and Harry Potter VII earns lots of boos from the crowd. "You're asking a conservative about the economic interests of Hollywood," Gingrich jokes. Bottom line, Romney, Gingrich and Paul are against the bills. Santorum is against the bills as well, but more eager to find some new rules to further protect intellectual property. "Where in America does it say that anything goes?" Santorum asks. There are some places, but Santorum has probably never been to them.

76 minutes. Break number two. Say what you want about the evils of Time Warner, but at least it allows CNN to go light on the commercial breaks.

78 minutes. We're back. No we're not. Another commercial break. Ignore the corporate backscratching at minute 76. Another movie made by Time Warner: Cats and Dogs -- The Revenge of Kitty Galore.

81 minutes. Back for real this time. The candidates are asked for one thing they would do over in the campaign. Gingrich says he would skip the first three months of the campaign when he "hired regular consultants and tried to figure how to be a normal candidate." Romney jokes that he would "get 25 more votes in Iowa." That's funny. Then Romney adds, "I guess I also would go back and take every moment I spent talking about one of the guys on the stage and spend that time talking about Barack Obama." This is disingenuous, but on message, and thus an apt summary of Romney's apparent strength and weakness. (As Romney says it, his campaign is blitzing reporters with more anti-Gingrich agitprop by e-mail.) Paul and Santorum can't think of anything they would do differently.

84 minutes. Immigration time. Same as before. Build a fence. Etc. Just look through previous "What You Missed" summaries to get the idea.

95 minutes. Abortion time. Gingrich attacks Romney for changing his mind on the issue. "Governor Romney has said that he had a experience in a lab and became pro-life, and I accept that," Gingrich says. Experience in a lab. Priceless. Then Gingrich says that Romney still appointed pro-choice judges, and still allowed for Planned Parenthood to benefit from his state health reforms. Santorum piles on, saying the country needs a pro-life crusader, not just a pro-life politician. It's like a tag team. At one point Gingrich even says, "I'll yield to Senator Santorum." Romney defends himself by pointing out that he had little choice, given the state he was in, and says he really is pro-life.

103 minutes. Paul finally gets a chance to speak again. He gets into a spat with Santorum about his own pro-life record. Paul calls abortion "a violent act" that should be handled by state, not federal, law; Santorum disagrees. At one point, Paul says to Santorum, "You are overly sensitive."

107 minutes. Final break.

111 minutes. We're back. King asks for closing arguments. Paul talks about liberty. Gingrich talks about certain doom if Obama is reelected, and suggests he is the only person who can defeat Obama. Romney lapses into his stump speech, quoting from the Declaration of Independence, and whatnot. Santorum argues that you need a conservative who will draw a sharp contrast with Obama. (See "What You Missed While Not Watching the Las Vegas GOP Debate.")

118 minutes. "That concludes our debate this evening," says King. And so it does. Four candidates still remain. No one knows how many more Republican debates are left. Should they go the way of that one pizza guy, they too won't be missed.

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Does the South Carolina Primary Change Anything? (ContributorNetwork)

COMMENTARY | The political atmosphere in my house is always interesting. I am a far-right person who feels the Republican Party does me a disservice every year, while my wife leans left and is slowly dipping her toes into voting Republican. As a social studies teacher, I love this time of year and find the discussion of elections, primaries and caucuses to be highly entertaining. And though I dislike much of our national political situation, I love living in South Carolina during primary season because it is the rare time that all eyes are here, at the home of the "first in the South" primary.

This year has been especially exciting leading to Saturday. Mitt Romney's and Rick Santorum's to the wire finish in Iowa will be discussed in political science classes for a while, I am sure. Meanwhile, Romney pulled a strong lead in New Hampshire, which was to be expected. Everyone began discussing South Carolina and our great claim to fame: the person who wins South Carolina wins the Republican nomination, election cycle after election cycle. All Romney had to do was win here and many pundits said it would be all over.

So what happened? Somehow, Newt Gingrich pulled out a victory in South Carolina. Now, instead of Romney being the assured victor of the Republican nomination, it is a contest considered wide open. Three states have chosen three winners. This completely blows my mind. I can't recall this happening in my life time in the Republican elections.

I must confess, I found this year's crop of candidates extremely disappointing. With voter dissatisfaction at an all-time high for all of Washington, the Republicans needed a decent candidate who could gain broad support across a spectrum of voters. Instead, we got niche candidates.

Santorum appeals to the social conservatives, which I certainly am, but has little excitement in his candidacy outside of his sweater vest collection, which I hear has a Web page devoted to it. Romney is a typical politician whose opinions change with the wind. He sounds good but when you pay any attention to his record, it is nearly impossible to tell where he would stand on issues.

My wife continues to remind me it is normal in politics, and I can't disagree, but I wish for more. Gingrich shot to national prominence 17 years ago as he led the Republicans to congressional victory but was cast out in a humiliating coup, when he was revealed to have all the moral fortitude of the president he led the charge to impeach.

Finally, there is Ron Paul. Paul is fun and has a great concept in returning to the Constitution, as a supreme guide for America. Meanwhile, he continues promoting an isolationist approach to world affairs, which would have been welcome 100 years ago but hardly seems possible in a world with satellite TV, cellphones and the Internet.

So where is the Republican Party headed now? Though many pundits have claimed recently the Republican Party is on the verge of collapse, due to the fractured primary, the majority of Republican-leaning voters will rally behind the eventual nominee, for fear of four more years of record unemployment, Obamacare and the constant downgrading of our allies to woo our enemies.

I don't believe the nominee will be chosen soon. This may be one of those once in a lifetime seasons where most of the states get a say, before a definite leader is seen. Before anyone says this is proof the Republican Party is in jeopardy, I remind you of the 2008 Democratic primary season, in which I was sure the hateful rhetoric between Hillary Clinton's and Obama's camps would tear the party apart. Instead, they now own the White House. This could be an interesting election year.

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South Carolina Primary Election Quotes (ContributorNetwork)

Newt Gingrich won the South Carolina presidential preference primary in dramatic fashion. In the week leading to the election, the supposed front-runner was Mitt Romney. Then Gingrich surged ahead and won more than 40 percent of the vote in the Palmetto State. The New York Times reports Gingrich had 40 percent of the vote and 23 delegates.

Here's are quotes from the four major candidates on the night of the South Carolina primary.

* "We want to run not a Republican campaign, we want to run an American campaign because we are optimistic about the future because America has always been optimistic about the future. If we unleash the American people, we can rebuild the America that we love." -- Newt Gingrich, giving his victory speech in South Carolina. Politico reports his tone was much different than after the Iowa caucus. Gingrich graciously accepted the speeches of the other three candidates.

* "In recent weeks, the choice within our party has also come into stark focus. President Obama has no experience running a business and running a state. Our party can't be led to victory by someone who also has ever led a business and never run a state. Our campaign will be about the businesses I helped start, not the bills I tried to pass. Our president has divided the nation, engaged in class warfare, and attacked the free enterprise system that has made America the envy of the world. We cannot defeat that president with a candidate that has joined in that very assault on free enterprise." -- Mitt Romney in his concession speech, according to CBS News . He was attacking Gingrich's credentials for being president as well as Obama's work at the White House. Romney came in second in South Carolina after finishing first in New Hampshire.

* "Three states, three winners, what a great country. Let me assure you, we will go to Florida, and then to Arizona, and Colorado, and.... It's a wide open race!" -- Rick Santorum on his future plans, according to ABC News . Florida is the next primary election on Jan. 31. Santorum came in third in South Carolina after winning the Iowa caucus on Jan. 3.

* "This is the beginning of a long, hard job. We will continue to do this. There's no doubt about it. In the beginning, I thought it would just be promotion of a cause. Then it dawned on me, when you win elections and you win delegates, that's the way you promote a cause." -- Rep. Ron Paul of Texas on his future plans for the GOP nominating process. Politico reports he finished fourth in South Carolina, the only one of the mainstream candidates who hasn't won a primary contest yet.

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Factors Shaping Gingrich’s South Carolina Primary Win (ContributorNetwork)

Former House Speaker Newt Gingrich pulled off a convincing win in the South Carolina primary on Saturday. Gingrich received 40.4 percent of the votes, and former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney got 27.8 percent, as reported by the New York Times. The primary leaves some interesting takeaways to ponder, including factors that influenced Gingrich's victory.

* South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley endorsed Romney early, but it apparently didn't have an impact, for she's losing popularity, too, according to Politico.

* Even though the southern state suffered through heavy precipitation Saturday, The State reported around 600,000 voters turned out, which bested the turnouts for 2008 and 2000. In total, South Carolina has about 3 million registered voters.

* CNSNews.com reported a Public Policy Polling survey and it showed Gingrich had a 54 percent favorable rating among likely GOP primary voters compared to a 37 percent unfavorable rating. Gingrich's attacks on the media seem to jell with the voters there, too, for only 14 percent of these people favor the media, compared to 77 percent who don't.

* The Detroit Free Press cited McClatchy-Tribune's reporting that super PAC and GOP presidential hopefuls' ad spending in "The Palmetto State" totaled some $12 million.

* According to CBS News exit polling, 64 percent of voters said the debates (with Gingrich getting standing ovations the previous two spectacles), influenced their vote, as opposed to 34 percent who didn't, according to CBS News' Political Hotsheet.

* According to the New York Times, Romney only won three counties, including the counties where the cities of Charleston and Columbia are. Gingrich won all the other counties.

* FoxNews.com reported one notable state endorsement Gingrich got came from the Rev. Bill Monroe, a highly esteemed religious leader, which helped the former House speaker win the evangelical vote easily per Fox News exit polls.

* The Associated Press reported early Sunday that Gingrich will take at least 23 of the state's 25 delegates, while Romney is the only candidate who has any chance of getting the other two delegates. Final results are expected to take at least a week to be completed.

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In a Surprising Twist, Gingrich Wins South Carolina Primary (ContributorNetwork)

COMMENTARY | Leading up to the South Carolina primary, Mitt Romney seemed to be the front-runner. That is until the debate on Thursday. There was a mixed reaction of South Carolina voters about Romney's personal wealth and his taxes. Romney plans to release some of his tax returns but has yet to disclose what years and how far back he will be disclosing. Two-thirds of South Carolina voters said Mitt Romney's personal background will have no dealings on how they voted, according to ABC News.

Newt Gingrich seemed to be a long shot going into Saturday's primary; however, he came out ahead. Early exit polls had put Gingrich in the range of 30 percent to 35 percent, with Romney second. The Washington Post says Gingrich finished with 40.4 percent to Romney's 27.9 percent.

South Carolina has picked the Republican nominee with its primary every presidential election since 1980. This was a crucial race for all contenders in the race. This made the South Carolina primary important to all potential nominees. There will be many more primaries and caucuses over the next several months. The winner of the nomination will go on to compete against sitting President Barack Obama.

This election the biggest issue on the table with the candidates for the Republican nomination is the economy. This issue will be a large issue in November when voters cast their final vote for the next president.

Gingrich's win in South Carolina means voters have chosen a different candidate in every primary so far. Romney won the New Hampshire primary and it appeared he had won the Iowa caucus, but after a recount shows former Pennsylvania Sen. Rick Santorum took Iowa.

The nomination still could be anyone's. Because South Carolina has chosen the winner of the nomination at each of its primary's since 1980 does not necessarily mean Gingrich will win the nomination. This could be history in the making that South Carolina will break its trend and not have chosen the winner of the nomination at its primary.

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South Carolina Primary Results by the Numbers (ContributorNetwork)

Newt Gingrich has been declared the winner of the South Carolina presidential primary. With three presidential races finished to this point, there have been three winners. Rick Santorum won the Iowa caucus. Mitt Romney was victorious in New Hampshire. Gingrich has won South Carolina. For the first time, three candidates have won the first three races.

Here's a look at the results of the South Carolina primary, by the numbers.

23: Delegates to the Republican National Convention that Gingrich earned. The delegates are based on the population of the state. Gingrich won just more than 40 percent of the vote, according to the New York Times. There are 25 delegates available from the Palmetto State.

4: Mainstream candidates on the ballot in South Carolina. For the Iowa caucus, there were eight major candidates.

46: Counties in South Carolina. Polls were open from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m.

1.1: Percentage of votes earned by Herman Cain. Even though he dropped out of the race in early December, Cain got over 6,300 votes in South Carolina. That number would not have made a difference in the final tally.

34: Percentage of voters in South Carolina who identify themselves as having an affiliation with the tea party. A CBS News poll claimed nearly half of them supported Gingrich.

18: Percentage of voters who came to the polls. Some precincts had heavier turnouts than others, especially in large cities where Republicans do well.

243,398: Votes Gingrich won in the primary, with 99 percent of the precincts reporting. The front-runner had 75,000 votes more than second place finisher Romney.

143,224: Votes Sen. John McCain won in the 2008 primary. He won by only 15,000 votes over Mike Huckabee.

3: Counties Romney won in South Carolina. Gingrich won the rest. Romney won Charleston County, Richland County and Beaufort County. Those places include Columbia and Charleston.

167,957: Votes Romney won. He improved upon his 2008 total by more than 100,000 votes. He won nearly 28 percent in 2012 vs. 15 percent four years ago.

4: Place Rep. Ron Paul finished in South Carolina. He came in last out of the mainstream candidates. Paul is the only major candidate who hasn't won a primary election in 2012.

William Browning is a research librarian specializing in U.S. politics. Born in St. Louis, Browning is active in local politics and served as a campaign volunteer for President Barack Obama and Missouri Sen. Claire McCaskill.

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Mitt Romney aims to pull off an 'Iowa' in South Carolina (The Christian Science Monitor)

Washington – Long-shot candidate Rick Santorum’s stunning near-win in the Iowa caucuses got the big headlines, but the victorious Mitt Romney also came out of the Hawkeye State with momentum.

Mr. Romney, too, had a bit of a surge at the end in Iowa, coming up from about 15 percent in the polls in early December to win with almost 25 percent. He hardly campaigned in Iowa, instead relying on the network he had built during his presidential campaign four years ago, and he kept expectations low until the end. Polls showing him as most able to beat President Obama in November made him strong among late deciders.

As the moderate former governor of Massachusetts, Romney was never a natural fit for Iowa Republicans, who skew more conservative and evangelical than Republicans as a whole. New Hampshire is home turf for Romney, and he is expected to win comfortably there next Tuesday.

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But the next contest – South Carolina, on Jan. 21 – will be a challenge. Once again, Romney will face a GOP electorate that skews conservative and evangelical. Thus, he is taking detours for two appearances there, one Thursday afternoon, then Friday morning, before heading back to friendly New Hampshire.

Thursday morning, Romney released a new ad in South Carolina attacking Mr. Obama for going around Congress and appointing three new members to the National Labor Relations Board.

“You’re seeing a president adopt policies which affect our economy based not upon what’s right for the American worker but instead what’s right for their politics,” Romney said in the ad.

The White House accuses Romney of opposing protections to workers. The National Labor Relations Board came under heavy criticism in South Carolina for challenging Boeing Co. over its decision to build the 787 Dreamliner there.  

Romney’s goal in South Carolina: to pull off another “Iowa” – that is, win a plurality victory, or at least come close, amid a crowd of conservatives. Texas Gov. Rick Perry’s decision to stay in the race after finishing fifth in Iowa may help Romney, as it helps keep the conservative pie divided.

South Carolina, in fact, could be an easier sell for Romney than Iowa. South Carolina has a primary, which produces higher turnout and doesn’t favor just the most committed (presumably conservative) Republicans, as is the case in the Iowa caucuses.

And if South Carolina Republican primary voters are anything like they were four years ago, they won’t be as conservative as Iowa GOP caucusgoers. In 2008, the exit poll showed 68 percent of South Carolina Republicans self-identified as conservative. In Tuesday’s entrance poll in Iowa, 83 percent of caucusgoers self-identified as conservative.

In both states, about 6 in 10 Republican voters are evangelical. That works against Romney, whose Mormon faith makes some evangelicals uncomfortable. But in a cycle where the economy is the No. 1 issue and electability overrides all else for some voters, Romney is still competitive among religious conservatives.

Palmetto State Republicans pride themselves in being the “deciders” in competitive primaries. Since the first South Carolina Republican primary in 1980, the winner has always gone on to win the nomination. But analysts warn against presuming it will always be thus; there have been only six such contests. Florida Republicans, who vote on Jan. 31, will provide a better test of party sentiment, as Florida is a bigger, more diverse state. Romney is already airing ads there.

In the end, a loss in South Carolina for Romney may be merely a bump in the road on the way to the nomination. And if he manages to pull off a victory there, he’s well-positioned to lock up the nomination early. 

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Watch this video, by Staff photographer Melanie Stetson Freeman, of Mitt Romney campaigning in New Hampshire prior to Tuesday's GOP primary:

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