Romney Wins Where It Counts Scoring Delegates While Raising Cash

Mitt Romney racked up a decisive victory Tuesday in the Illinois primary, shoring up his claim that he will inevitably take the Republican presidential nomination and dealing another blow to Rick Santorum's bid to block him.


With 99% of precincts reporting, Mr. Romney led with 47% to Mr. Santorum's 35%. Rep. Ron Paul of Texas had 9%, and Newt Gingrich trailed with 8%.


That gave Mr. Romney, the former Massachusetts governor, fresh momentum heading into a month in which the race moves largely to Northeast and mid-Atlantic states that are friendly terrain for him.


While the nominating contest has remained competitive longer than he expected, Mr. Romney has won in every region of the country but the Deep South, including in Ohio, Florida and Virginia—large states that will be battlegrounds when the Republican winner faces Democratic President Barack Obama this fall. The Illinois victory gives him a trifecta in the industrial Midwest, following much narrower wins in Michigan and Ohio.


The Illinois primary gave Mr. Santorum his best shot yet at a head-to-head matchup with Mr. Romney, as Messrs. Gingrich and Paul made little effort to campaign in the state. But Mr. Santorum didn't seem to benefit from the waning of support for Mr. Gingrich, raising questions about whether Mr. Romney's rivals together can achieve their goal of preventing him from winning the nomination.


"With each step after Illinois, it becomes tougher for the remaining three others in the field to raise money and make a compelling case," said Rich Bond, a former chairman of the Republican National Committee.


Mr. Romney hailed the results Tuesday night as an "extraordinary victory" before turning his attention to Mr. Obama, saying the president's background before running for office gave him little understanding of how to shepherd the economy.




"You can't learn that teaching constitutional law. You can't learn that as a community organizer,'' Mr. Romney said at a victory party in the Chicago suburb of Schaumburg.


"I'm running for president because I have the experience and the vision to get us out of this mess," he said.


Mr. Santorum answered on Tuesday night by challenging Mr. Romney's background as an investor and management consultant.