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| South Carolina primary: Exit polls suggest Gingrich win | South Carolina primary: Exit polls suggest Gingrich win |
| (40 minutes later) | |
| Exit polls predict a win for Newt Gingrich over Mitt Romney in South Carolina's primary, the latest leg of the battle for the Republican candidacy in the US presidential election. | |
| CNN, Fox News, MSNBC and NBC called the vote in the former House speaker's favour shortly after polls closed. | |
| Former Pennsylvania senator Rick Santorum and Texas representative Ron Paul trailed badly. | |
| The South Carolina victor has won the nomination in each election since 1980. | The South Carolina victor has won the nomination in each election since 1980. |
| Polling stations across South Carolina closed at 1900 local time on Saturday (00:00 GMT Sunday). | |
| It looks like a victory for Mr Gingrich, and a big one, the BBC North America editor Mark Mardell in South Carolina. | |
| Some early exit polls gave Mr Gingrich a solid lead of up to 10% over Mr Romney, a former governor of Massachusetts. | Some early exit polls gave Mr Gingrich a solid lead of up to 10% over Mr Romney, a former governor of Massachusetts. |
| If it is true, it is important, our correspondent says, because all along the story of this race has been the search by Conservatives for an alternative to Mitt Romney. | If it is true, it is important, our correspondent says, because all along the story of this race has been the search by Conservatives for an alternative to Mitt Romney. |
| It looks like victory for Newt, and a big one. If it is true, it is important. | |
| All along the story of this race has been the search by Conservatives for an alternative to Mitt Romney. | |
| It's just possible they have settled on Gingrich. | |
| At the very least such a result would puncture the sense that eventually Romney will triumph. It slows his momentum. | |
| And I suspect that it will mean the race will get very nasty indeed. | |
| One thing I wouldn't take too seriously. | |
| Ever since 1980, the Republican winner of the South Carolina race has gone on to win the party's nomination. | |
| It is an interesting historical fact but it is certainly not an iron law. | |
| Its just possible they have settled on Mr Gingrich. At the very least such a result would puncture the sense that eventually Mr Romney will triumph, our correspondent adds. | Its just possible they have settled on Mr Gingrich. At the very least such a result would puncture the sense that eventually Mr Romney will triumph, our correspondent adds. |
| Mr Romney, speaking after polls closed at 19:00 (00:00 GMT Sunday) said the race for the Republican presidential candidacy was "getting to be even more interesting". | |
| "This is a hard fight because there is so much worth fighting for," he said. | |
| Mr Gingrich has captured the headlines in recent days, batting off a potentially damaging interview from an ex-wife, in which she said he had wanted an "open marriage". | |
| The other two major candidates left in the race are former Senator Rick Santorum and Congressman Ron Paul. | |
| Mr Santorum is competing with Mr Gingrich for the conservative vote, while Mr Paul's libertarian message has won him a passionate support, especially among young voters. | |
| Primaries and caucuses will be held in every US state over the next few months to pick a Republican nominee before the eventual winner is anointed at the party convention in August to take on Democratic President Barack Obama in November. |