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Former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney picks up more momentum in his bid for the GOP nomination, winning his second consecutive contest. |
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| Entrance polls showed Romney won a wide cross-section of Nevada voters, capturing moderates, conservatives, and tea party supporters. |
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Former Speaker of the House Newt Gingrich placed second in the Nevada race, and Texas Congressman Ron Paul came in third. Reports say Gingrich edged Paul for second place by less than 800 votes.
The former senator from Pennsylvania, Rick Santorum trailed the group.
Check out the final numbers in the NewsHour's map center.
Nevada's vote is the first in the western United States, and takes place in a state that is likely to be a key battleground in November.
The Democratic Candidate
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Barack H. Obama is the 44th President of the United States. On April 4, 2011, Obama announced his re-election campaign for 2012 in a video titled "It Begins with Us" that he posted on his website. |
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The U.S. Constitution says that a president can serve two four-year terms, and that is what President Obama would like to do.
The Democratic Party will hold primaries and caucuses, but there are no real challengers to the president’s nomination. Instead, the Obama team will spend its time reaching out to independent voters, who helped President Obama win in 2008.
President Obama has already started traveling the country giving speeches and outlining why he wants and deserves another four years in office. Key to his success will be whether the economy gets better or worse.
NewsHour conservative analyst David Brooks said his message misses the point. “I think this election is about national decline. And he's trying to make it an election about [economic] inequality. And I think people agree that inequality is a problem. I don't think they see it as the central problem, which is about growth and really preserving the country as a growing, dynamic country.”
NewsHour liberal analyst Mark Shields adds, “There are going to be two questions that voters ask in 2012. Is it working -- that is, is the Obama economy, economic plan -- and is it fair?”
What Happens Next
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Each party holds a national convention to choose a final presidential nominee. |
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On March 6, otherwise known as Super Tuesday, 11 states will host primaries or caucuses.
Click here to see the New York Times’ primary calendar: http://elections.nytimes.com/2012/primaries/calendar
When both parties have chosen a candidate sometime in the spring or possibly early summer, there will be conventions at the end of the summer. Conventions are big celebrations that try to energize the “base” of the party – the folks who will give money, knock on doors and speak out for their candidate.
Some candidates decide to run in the November presidential election as independents or as representatives of smaller third parties, but they face very tough odds without the money and power networks of the Republican and Democratic Parties.
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| --Compiled by Thaisi Da Silva for NewsHour Extra |
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| Students From Around the US Debate Gun Control |
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 I think we've been witnessing violence for years, whether in reality through the media or through video games, and I don't think that's a first-hand effect. |
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| Ellie, Student Reporting Labs |
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