Photo Gallery Romney's Second Triumph
Cheering for Mitt Romney: The candidate won the second Republican primary in the state of New Hampshipe on Tuesday, enjoying a considerable lead.
Romney celebrates his win together with his wife Ann in Manchester, New Hampshire. The couple are flanked by their sons, as they applaud their father's victory in the primary.
The former governor of Massachusetts's victory was cheered by his followers. Romney's second primary victory has made him the favorite to become the Republican's presidential candidate for this year's US presidential elections.
Despite his victory, Romney, who likes to be seen as an expert on the economy, tripped a bit during the campaign in New Hampshire. In a recent debate on health insurance companies, Romney said: "I like being able to fire people." The quote proceeded to go viral. As Romney was holding the daughter of a supporter in his arms at a recent campaign rally, a member of the crowd shouted out: "Do you want to fire the kid too?"
Following the close result in the Iowa caucus, Romney's Republican challengers were quick to strengthen their campaigns before the New Hampshire primary.
A committee supporting rival candidate New Gingrich has pledged $3.4 million to finance an anti-Romney television campaign.
Among staunch conservatives, many have eyed Rick Santorum as a possible challenger to Obama for the White House. Santorum obtained only eight votes less than Romney in the Iowa caucus. But in more moderate New Hampshire, both Santorum and Gingrich were relegated to the back of the pack in terms of votes, finishing well behind Romney.
Jon Huntsman had also hoped he would have better prospects in New Hampshire by trying to reach out to political centrists. In the end, though, he only came in third place.
Republican candidate Ron Paul fared better. By current projections he is 16 percentage points behind Romney. In the long run, however, his chances of securing the party's nomination appear to be very limited.
Ron Paul does dispose of a loyal group of supporters, but his stance on many issues is unpopular with Republicans. For example, he has called for the withdrawal of US troops from Afghanistan and he has said he would lower the military budget if elected to office.
