Rick Santorum stumps in Iowa as he surges in GOP polls days before the state caucus
By JONATHAN LEMIRE
Mitt Romney still leads the pack of Republicans vying for the GOP candidacy, but Rick Santorum has surged recently in the Iowa polls after building grassroots campaign in the state. (AFP/Getty Images)
DES MOINES, IOWA - Rick Santorum has suddenly surged to the upper tier of the Iowa GOP polls - but this probably wasn't how he wanted to celebrate.
A fistful of glitter was dumped on the Republican candidate as he arrived at a campaign stop late Friday night by an angry gay rights activist. While the purple glitter looked festive, Santorum was not amused — he quickly brushed it off and did not acknowledge the unidentified man, who shouted, "Stop the hate! Taste the rainbow!"
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But the former Pennsylvania senator, long a target of gay activists after he infamously compared homosexuality to bestiality, did not let the incident slow down his breakneck pace as he tries to capitalize on his surprising momentum just days before the caucus.
Long an afterthought in the Republican race, Santorum spent months polling in the single digits and marginalized in the debates. But as he lived in the shadows of Mitt Romney and Newt Gingrich, he methodically visited all of Iowa's 99 counties, building a grassroots network of supporters - including scores of Evangelical pastors - who have preached his good word in recent days.
The results have paid off: Santorum has jumped to third place with 16% of the likely vote, according to a NBC/Marist poll released Friday. A month ago, he tallied just 5% - and politicos think he can jump further still.
As Republican primary voters search for a conservative alternative to the frontrunner Romney, their support has taken turns briefly coalescing behind a slew of candidates, from Michele Bachmann to Rick Perry to Herman Cain to Newt Gingrich.
Santorum has a lot of that backing now, and with momentum on his side, he could snare further defections from the other conservatives' camps before Tuesday.
"I think I have a shot and I'm feeling better [about\] that shot every day," Santorum, 53, told reporters at a diner in Independence, Iowa. "This could be a late-breaking race. Now we just have to get over the hurdle of convincing people we can win."
A Santorum victory would give his underdog, cash-strapped candidacy a shot in the arm but could also help Romney - assuming the former Massachusetts governor also has a strong showing in Iowa.
Romney's team, which is all but assured of winning in New Hampshire next week, has most worried about a strong challenge from Gingrich, but if the ex-Speaker places poorly in the Hawkeye State, he might need a huge win in the third primary battleground, South Carolina, to keep his campaign alive.
Gingrich - who was glitter-bombed at a book signing in September - continued a last-minute bus tour across Iowa Saturday, a day after he wept at a campaign stop while talking about his late mother. Once again, he railed against the negative ads that helped send his poll numbers falling.
"Candidates ought to make their grandchildren watch the ads they're running," he said during a stop in Council Bluffs. "If they're not proud of those ads, they shouldn't run them."
All of the campaigns were anxiously awaiting the results of the final Des Moines Register poll, set to be released Saturday night. That poll has long been viewed as the most accurate measure of candidates' support heading into the caucus.