By Susan Page, USA TODAY
Former Massachusetts governor Mitt Romney, who says he's on a clear path to the Republican presidential nomination, braced for a speed bump Tuesday night amid signs of strength by rival Rick Santorum in two of the three states holding contests.
In early returns, Santorum jumped to a significant lead in Missouri's non-binding primary - he was holding his Election Night rally in St. Charles - and was competing hard in Minnesota's caucuses.
Romney was stumping in Colorado, also holding caucuses.
"I think the big story coming out tonight is going to be it's very hard for the elite media to portray Romney as the inevitable nominee," former House speaker Newt Gingrich said in an interview on CNN. "After tonight, you'll see this is a wide-open race."
Even before the returns came in, the Romney campaign sent out a pre-emptive "reality check" downplaying the importance of the trio of contests and touting Romney's organizational and financial edge in the primaries and caucuses that follow.
"John McCain lost 19 states in 2008, and we expect our opponents to notch a few wins too," the memo by political director Rich Beeson read. "But unlike the other candidates, our campaign has the resources and organization to keep winning over the long run," citing "old fashioned delegate math."
Still, setbacks would raise questions about Romney's claim of inevitability - he targeted only President Obama on the stump Tuesday, as though the GOP nomination already was his - and could carry particular sting in Minnesota, a state he won in 2008.
A victory by Santorum, whose only previous win was in the opening Iowa caucuses five weeks ago, would likely energize his followers, boost his fundraising and encourage him to stay in the race at least through the March 6 Super Tuesday contests. It also would bolster his argument that he, not Gingrich, should be seen as the true conservative alternative to Romney.
Gingrich campaigned Tuesday in Ohio, where early voting opened Tuesday for its March 6 primary.
Texas Rep. Ron Paul was in Minnesota, speaking at a caucus in Maple Grove and urging voters to support him.
The precinct caucuses in Colorado and Minnesota, as in Iowa, include a straw poll of presidential preferences. They are the first of several sets of meetings that choose the states' delegates to the Republican National Convention in Tampa next summer.
Missouri's convention delegation will be chosen at caucuses held next month. Gingrich didn't try to get on the Tuesday's ballot in the Show Me state, and Romney and Texas Rep. Ron Paul gave the contest little attention. But a pro-Santorum super PAC ran TV ads there.