Rick Santorum Gains ‘Momentum’ From Poll Boost
Republican presidential candidate and former Pennsylvania Senator Rick Santorum has gained an increase in supporters, according to a new election poll.
"We've got momentum," Santorum told people at a diner in Independence, Iowa, on Wednesday.
"I have a shot and I'm feeling better about that shot every day, the top three. This could be a late-breaking race. Now we just have to get over the hurdle of convincing people we can win," Santorum told reporters in Mason City, Iowa, the day before.
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Santorum has gained new confidence after a survey was released by CNN in association with Time on Wednesday that placed him in third place, following Mitt Romney and Ron Paul. “Hard work pays off, as it does in most areas of life,” Santorum told CNN Wednesday afternoon.
Santorum, mostly unknown to Americans before his campaign began, has journeyed through Iowa more than all other Republican presidential candidates, Reuters reported.
He spoke to some Iowa voters, who still remain undecided and want a conservative candidate, and warned them not to vote for his rival Ron Paul, who is considered less conservative than other Republican candidates.
"If you want to stick it to the man, don't vote for Ron Paul. That's not sticking it to anybody but the Republican Party," Santorum said at a furniture store in Dubuque, according to Reuters.
The former Pennsylvania senator has gained the support of some key conservatives, including supporters of Mike Huckabee, who won the Republican caucuses in 2008, conservative radio host Sam Clovis, and Bob Vander Plaats, former candidate for governor of Iowa.
On Tuesday, conservative activists Alex and Brett Harris, founders of a national group that supported Huckabee in 2008, announced their endorsement of Santorum.
Although the Iowa caucus is on Jan. 3, Santorum’s campaign, which is still struggling financially, has only just begun running television advertisements.
"Rick Santorum could be a real surprise," former Dallas County GOP Chairman Rob Taylor said, according to Reuters.
Chuck Laudner, a veteran Iowa GOP operative, told Reuters that Santorum is "the only candidate in this race I trust."
Pastor Kerry Jech of the New Hope Christian Church in Marshalltown, Iowa, who told The Christian Post earlier this month he would let faith guide his decision and will soon make his decision public, could not be reached for further comments.
