Gingrich: Nothing will make me quit White House race

Defiant contender Newt Gingrich says that nothing will make him quit the race to the White House (Reuters)

Newt Gingrich said yesterday that there was probably no circumstance that would lead him to pull out of the Republicans' race to challenge President Barack Obama in November.

The former congressman, below, is running a distant third in the race to secure 1,144 delegates to clinch the nomination, well behind Mitt Romney, the former Massachusetts governor, and his fellow conservative Rick Santorum, a former Pennsylvania senator.

Mr Santorum, who is in second place but with only just over half as many delegates as the front-runner, has called on Mr Gingrich to step aside to allow for a head-to-head contest between himself and Mr Romney, who has built his lead largely because the others have split the conservative vote. But when asked on the This Morning show on the CBS television network what conditions could lead him to withdraw from the race, he said: "Probably none."

"I'll be with you in Tampa," Mr Gingrich said, referring to the city where the Republican National Convention will be held in August.

Mr Gingrich, a Southerner, saw his chances of regaining momentum seemingly dashed on Tuesday when he failed to win in Alabama and Mississippi, where Mr Santorum won and Mr Romney came second.

Meanwhile, President Obama's campaign stepped into full swing, a day after the Vice-President, Joe Biden, labelled the Republican candidates as protectors of the privileged and cast President Obama as an advocate for the middle class.

AP