A resurgent Rick Santorum has been declared the winner in three states, raising questions about Mitt Romney's appeal with conservatives at the core of the Republican Party.
Voters in Missouri, Minnesota and Colorado chose Santorum in fairly convincing fashion on Tuesday night, while Romney placed second in two of the three contests.
Texas congressman Ron Paul took second place in Minnesota but was underwhelming in the other two contests. Finally, Newt Gingrich brought up the rear, and even failed to appear on the Missouri ballot, mostly skipping Tuesday's contests to focus on Ohio, which votes next month.
Delegates were not officially awarded Tuesday night for Colorado and Minnesota. They will officially be distributed at district and state conventions in the future.
The Missouri primary was done solely for bragging rights and no delegates were awarded. With the sweep, Santorum has seems to have solidified his status as an elite-level presidential hopeful.
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