Romney in First Place and Out of the Race

            There will be many blogs and media articles today analyzing the results of the New Hampshire race and its impact on the selection of the eventual nominee.   Whereas McCain and Huckabee are proclaiming victory for their first and third place finishes, the Romney camp is characterized by defeat for his second place finish.  

            It is most definitely another tough loss for Romney.   Pundits are already sounding the death knell for him.   Some are touting the line that his checkbook is the only thing keeping him on life support.   Others have called him “dead man walking.” 

            I find this all curious for a guy who currently stands in first place.   I write this not as a supporter of Romney’s but rather as an observer of the system that we use to select our nominees.

            McCain and Huckabee are the current darlings and beneficiaries of their victories in Iowa and New Hampshire — rightfully so.   But what I think will be missed in all this is the fact that Romney is currently in first place.   If you combine the number of votes received in both Iowa and New Hampshire, Romney has received more votes than any of the other candidates.

Combined IW/NH vote totals based on CNN election center figures:

Romney	104388	29.9%
McCain	103294	29.6%
Huckabee	67197	19.2%
Paul	29806	8.5%
Giuliani	24351	7.0%
Thompson	18753	5.4%
Hunter	1735	0.5%

Romney also has won more delegates than any of the candidates.

Delegate Count according to CNN election center

Romney	30	42.3%
Huckabee	21	29.6%
McCain	10	14.1%
Thompson	6	8.5%
Paul	2	2.8%
Giuliani	1	1.4%
Hunter	1	1.4%

            So we have a situation where the candidate who has received more votes than any other candidate and currently leads in the delegate count is considered out of the race by most of the media and bloggers.

             Mitt, you might win most of the votes, but you will lose the race for the nomination.   You might want to consider giving Gore a call.  He’ll understand.