• Klein: Santorum advanced his profile, even in losing
Former Pennsylvania Sen. Rick Santorum on Tuesday suspended his presidential campaign, avoiding a potentially embarrassing primary loss in his home state and clearing the way for front-runner Mitt Romney to claim the GOP nomination.
“While this presidential race for us is over, for me, and we will suspend our campaign effective today, we are not done fighting,” Santorum said, surrounded by his family in Gettysburg.
Santorum said he and his family made the decision to leave the race during the Easter holiday weekend, when his daughter, Bella, was hospitalized due to complications from a rare genetic condition.
Santorum’s improbable campaign defied expectations, growing from an afterthought at the onset of the GOP nominating contest in Iowa to victories there and in 10 other states since January. Santorum built his candidacy around fervent support from evangelical and rural voters who embraced his message of faith and family even while the issues of the economy and jobs dominated the campaign.
“This race was as improbable as any race you will ever see for president,” he said. “Against all odds, we won 11 states.”
By dropping out before the April 24 Pennsylvania primary, Santorum preserves his strong showing — and essentially ushers in the official start of the fall campaign between President Obama and Romney.
Santorum did not endorse Romney Tuesday but did call the former Massachusetts governor to inform him of his intention to exit the race.
The Romney campaign welcomed the development, which will save the frontrunner millions of dollars that would have been spent on ensuring victory in the Pennsylvania primary and other GOP contests.
Senator Santorum is an able and worthy competitor, and I congratulate him on the campaign he ran.
— Mitt Romney (@MittRomney) April 10, 2012
“Sen. Santorum is an able and worthy competitor, and I congratulate him on the campaign he ran,” Romney said in a statement. “He has proven himself to be an important voice in our party and in the nation. We both recognize that what is most important is putting the failures of the last three years behind us and setting America back on the path to prosperity.”
With Santorum’s withdrawal, calls intensified for former House Speaker Newt Gingrich to halt his campaign so conservatives could coalesce behind Romney. However, Gingrich vowed to stay in the race and made a play for Santorum’s supporters.
“I am committed to staying in this race all the way to Tampa so that the conservative movement has a real choice,” he said. “I humbly ask Sen. Santorum’s supporters to visit Newt.org to review my conservative record and join us as we bring these values to Tampa.”
Despite a shoestring budget and little organizational prowess, Santorum outlasted other Republican presidential candidates, including Texas Gov. Rick Perry, Minnesota Gov. Tim Pawlenty and Minnesota Rep. Michele Bachmann, who sought to become the conservative alternative to Romney.
But in the end, support for Santorum even among his most loyal supporters was fading, and Romney was gaining momentum in both Pennsylvania and other upcoming primary states.
With his ability to appeal to social conservatives and ardent Republicans, Santorum is expected to be on Romney’s shortlist for potential running mates.
