ORLANDO, Fla. — After Newt Gingrich failed in his Florida bid to overtake Mitt Romney as the GOP front-runner, he now faces a three-man struggle out west to hold on to his status as the top conservative alternative to Romney.

“Just yesterday a poll was released showing that I am leading Mitt Romney by double digits in Missouri,” former Pennsylvania Sen. Rick Santorum wrote in a fundraising email to supporters. “I am the only one with a positive message and track record as a true conservative.”

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