Election 2012: Romney Wins Arizona and Michigan

Former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney won the Republican presidential primary in Michigan and Arizona on Tuesday night, securing his spot as front-runner in the campaign.

The final results showed Romney with 41 percent, former Pennsylvania Sen. Rick Santorum with 38 percent, Congressman Ron Paul with 11.6 percent, and former Speaker of the House Newt Gingrich with 6.5 percent.

Arizona’s 29 delegates were awarded to Romney in a winner-take-all scenario. In Michigan, candidates received two delegates from each district they won. There are 14 congressional districts in Michigan. In order to secure the nomination, a candidate needs 1,144 delegates.

Analysts said that Michigan was a must-win for Romney, because of his roots to the state. Romney was born in Michigan and his father was governor of the state.

“Tonight is all the more special because we’re celebrating in the state where I was born, surrounded by Michiganders we consider family,” Romney said to his supporters at a victory party in Novi, MI.

Before the results, Romney and Santorum were neck-and-neck in the race, only separated by a margin of about 1 percent.

“We didn't win by a lot but we won by enough, and that's all that counts,” Romney said.

The victory gives him a needed momentum for Super Tuesday, where 10 states, Alaska, Georgia, Idaho, Massachusetts, North Dakota, Ohio, Oklahoma, Tennessee, Vermont and Virginia, will vote.

Paul previously campaigned in Michigan and Arizona, but he was not expected to do well in the states.

Gingrich, who decided not to campaign in Michigan and Arizona, visited his home state of Georgia to speak on energy policy and the escalating gas prices on primary night. However, he didn’t mention the primaries in his speech.

But Gingrich wasn’t the only one who spoke about energy. Santorum spoke to his supporters at a watch party in Grand Rapids, MI.

“We have an opportunity to open up offshore, (the President) says no, deepwater, he says no, Alaska, he says no, build a pipeline, he says no,” Santorum began. “We need a president who says yes to the American people and energy production.”

Romney, on the other hand, stayed away from the issues and focused on attacking President Obama. In fact, Romney didn’t mention anything about his Michigan rival, Rick Santorum.

“We’ve seen enough of this President over the last three years to know that we don’t need another four,” Romney told the crowd. “President Obama’s budget raises taxes on savings and investment. I will help America’s middle class families save and invest tax-free."

Exit polls showed that the economy was the top issue for most voters. Romney overwhelmingly beat Santorum in polls that asked which candidate had a stronger economic policy.

Santorum focused on social issues during his campaign, until the last few days of the campaign. Instead, his campaign led an effort to appeal to middle-class voters.

“It’s getting harder for people to make ends meet, because we have a government that is crushing us every single day with more taxes, more regulations, and the idea that they know better than you how to run your life,” Santorum said.

Many Democrats reportedly voted in the Republican primary as well. Santorum admitted to enticing Democrats in Michigan to vote against Romney. Meanwhile, Michigan Democratic Party Chairman Mark Brewer denied that the party encouraged Democrats to vote for Santorum.

Candidates are scheduled to begin campaigning in Super Tuesday states on Wednesday.