BIRMINGHAM, Ala. — Barely audible above the murmurs of disappointment at Newt Gingrich’s election-night party Tuesday, were a few half-hearted bursts of optimism from supporters trying to make sense of how the only Southern candidate in the Republican presidential race could have failed to win either of the Deep South races.
“Next time!” one shouted, pumping a fist in the air.
“At least he didn’t end up in third place,” another reasoned.
But in reality Gingrich’s future in the 2012 Republican race couldn’t look less promising following twin losses in Mississippi and Alabama Tuesday and in the face of mounting pressure from inside the party for him to quit.
“I would encourage him to get out,” Alabama Republican Chairman Bill Armistead told The Washington Examiner.
After pouring all of his resources, time and energy into Mississippi and Alabama, Gingrich failed to win either “must-win” state despite his deep political roots in neighboring Georgia.
Gingrich was clobbered in his own back yard by Rick Santorum, a former senator from Pennsylvania who polls showed was trailing both Gingrich and front-runner Mitt Romney on the eve of the election.
Gingrich’s campaign originally claimed he needed to win at least one of Tuesday’s primaries to remain viable, but after losing both Gingrich insists he isn’t leaving the race any time soon.
He told a crowd in Birmingham that he intends to take the fight over the nomination all the way to the Republican National Convention in Tampa this August. He said he would continue to compete in hopes of adding to his tally of convention delegates.
“With your help we are going to take a much bigger delegation than we had yesterday,” Gingrich told supporters Tuesday night.
Gingrich is third in the delegate race. And while his chances of collecting the 1,144 delegates needed to clinch the nomination appear slim, his aides say his goal now is to block Romney from becoming the nominee.
Romney is the current delegate leader with 496 and is better financed and organized than any of his opponents. But many in the conservative base consider him too moderate, which has helped Gingrich win two states while propelling Santorum into second place behind Romney. As of Wednesday, Santorum had 236 delegates. Gingrich has 141.
Armistead, the Alabama party chairman, is among those who don’t share Gingrich’s hopes for a brokered convention at which the nominee would be chosen. Calling it a “terrible idea,” Armistead said the only way Gingrich could stop Romney from winning the nomination is to quit the race and allow the party’s conservatives to coalesce behind Santorum.
Though Gingrich has no real chance of winning the nomination now, Republican strategist Keith Appell said his efforts to amass an army of convention delegates could ensure Gingrich some prominent role at the convention.
That’s if Gingrich makes it to the convention. There were indications Wednesday that Sheldon Adelson, the Las Vegas billionaire who has been bankrolling a super-PAC that supports Gingrich, may have decided against further contributions.
In addition to money woes, Gingrich’s twin losses mean he’ll face the prospect of significantly diminished support among voters in the next round of primaries in Louisiana and Illinois.
“He can stay in,” Appell said. “But it may not really matter.”
