Victorious Romney turns fire on Obama

 
Celebration: Mitt Romney and wife Ann greet supporters at a rally in Tampa last night
David Gardner13 April 2012

Mitt Romney vowed to end the Obama era as he clinched a pivotal Republican primary victory in Florida today.

After defeating Newt Gingrich by an emphatic 14-point margin, he turned his fire on the President, telling him: "Now it's time to get out of the way."

The millionaire businessman put his rivals in the shade in the Sunshine State, winning 46 per cent of the vote to 32 per cent for Mr Gingrich, 13 for Right-winger Rick Santorum, and seven for maverick physician Ron Paul.

Addressing a rally in Tampa, Mr Romney said: "Three years ago this week, a newly elected President Obama faced the American people and said that if he couldn't turn the economy around in three years he'd be looking at a one-term proposition - we're here to collect.

"Mr President, you were elected to lead, you chose to follow, and now it's time to get out of the way. My leadership will end the Obama era and begin a new era of American prosperity."

The former Massachusetts governor congratulated his opponents before setting his sights on the next primary in Nevada on Saturday.

But Mr Gingrich repeated his pledge to fight "in every state" and refused to congratulate his rival, taking a swipe at Mr Romney's big-money campaign instead. The former speaker of the House of Representatives told voters to "have people power beat money power in the next six months". Mr Romney and Restore our Future, a group supporting him, outspent Mr Gingrich by about $15.5 million to $3.3 million.

The win was a huge psychological boost for Mr Romney after his surprise defeat to Mr Gingrich in South Carolina. It was his only his second outright victory. The other, in New Hampshire, had been played down by critics who said he was favoured because he came from a neighbouring state.

His strong finish in Florida, attributed by many pundits to aggressive attacks on Mr Gingrich, will send a message to some undecided Republicans that he can settle faint hearts in the party.

The winner-take-all Florida primary was worth 50 delegates to the Republican National Convention, which takes place in Tampa in August. It drew more voters than the first three contests combined, and some pollsters suggested the winner should have a lock on the party nomination.

But there is still a long way to go. Mr Romney's win means he now has a total of 87 delegates, to 26 for Mr Gingrich, 14 for Mr Santorum and four for Mr Paul. But the winner needs 1,144 delegates to clinch the nomination.

Mr Santorum, the former Pennsylvania senator, had been so gloomy about his prospects he had already moved on to Nevada yesterday.

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