ATLANTA -- As Newt Gingrich pledges to stay in the campaign for the long haul, Georgia's presidential primary is shaping up as a bruising fight.
Gingrich's supporters are preparing to blitz his home state ahead of the March 6 primary. But Mitt Romney's supporters aren't conceding anything. Defeating Gingrich in Georgia would be a stunning blow for his candidacy.
Up for grabs are 76 delegates, the most in any of the 10 Super Tuesday states.
Romney's camp hopes momentum from his big successes in Florida and Nevada, plus strong finishes in February elections, will put him in a commanding position.
But Gingrich is counting on supporters, including Gov. Nathan Deal, to help him win a convincing victory. Campaign aide Susan Meyers says she can guarantee that Gingrich "will not be losing Georgia."
As he charts a possible course to the Republican nomination, aides say Gingrich will paint frontrunner Mitt Romney as the candidate of the PGA golf tour while the former House speaker pursues the blue collar mantle of Dale Earnhardt.
It's a strategy that exploits the class warfare Gingrich professes to oppose. Still, it could pay dividends once the GOP race again swings South. Gingrich sees delegate-rich Texas as a firewall in April. But he must slog through more than 30 contests before that.
It won't be easy. Coming off sizable wins in Florida and Nevada, Romney is again the undisputed frontrunner in the Republican race, having brushed aside the threat posed by Gingrich when he won South Carolina on Jan. 21. Romney has momentum, money and a healthy lead in pledged delegates.
And before the 10-state battle on March 6 known as Super Tuesday, the Republican race will move through several more states seen as favorable to Romney, such as his old home state of Michigan.
(Associated Press)