Santorum’s appeal to Democrats - while there may be some mischief makers among the Dems, I think most of the Democrat votes gotten by Santorum have been from blue collar or lunch-bucket type Democrats, who are attracted to the social conservative message, but who have problems with a corporate-type guy like Romney.
In any case, this is one heckuva cage match for the Republican nomination, and it’s anything goes. If Santoum’s edge is getting Democrats to vote for him, so as to be able to run against him in the fall, more power to him.
Romney will undoubtedly win in Chicago and, if these polls bear out, in the suburban ring area as well. Santorum many win in the rural areas, but how many Congressional Districts in the state are dominated by rural areas? Maybe a handful. And, one of them is Romney’s by default since Santorum has no delegates in that district.
The statewide delegates will be meted out in proportion to the statewide vote.
Therefore, Romney has a chance of fetching two-thirds or so of the state’s sizable number of delegates, with Santorum getting the remainder.
Such a result would move Romney further along to the nomination; but, not like Patton sweeping across Europe, more like Grant advancing on Richmond.
Right as of now, Santorum has absolutely no chance of being the “presumptive nominee” of the party. He would need a miracle to defeat Romney in Illinois; and, even if he got that miracle, and put into jeopardy Romney’s chance of becoming the presumptive nominee when the June 6 states hold their primaries, Santorum would still have no chance of becoming the presumptive nominee himself.
Santorum is now saying that a “brokered convention” wouldn’t be so bad for the party. I’d agree, if that meant somebody like David Petraus could be coaxed into seeking the party’s nomination, assuming Petraus is with us on economic policy, which is not to say that we should double down on Afghanistan as Santorum seems to have said. But, the insiders think Jeb Bush would emerge with the nomination from out of a brokered convention. Is this what Santorum wants?
Is Santorum merely a stalking horse for a third Bush administration?
Santorum is more of an insider than many here care to admit.
His record proves that theory without a doubt. His rhetoric says the opposite, but he is also known for saying one thing and doing the opposite.....”Taking one for the team” sort of excuse.
Mandate-Mitt has all the Anti-Bamma-Undocumented “he should be serving us coffee”, government vote. They will absolutely not allow the Undocumented to learn to work the system with another term.
The 15 statewide out of 69 delegates are simply chosen by the party and go to the convention unbound. 2 of them are already pledged to Romney, just as almost all the party delegates who have declared their choice across the country are.