http://content.usatoday.com/communities/onpolitics/post/2012/01/Iowa-caucuses-count-Mitt-Romney-Rick-Santorum--607193/1It's official: Rick Santorum has been certified with a 34-vote lead in the Iowa caucuses.
But votes missing from eight precincts means there is no official winner of the event that kicks off the presidential nominating season.
"Just as I did on the early morning hours on Jan. 4, I congratulate Sen. Santorum and Gov. Romney on a hard-fought effort during the closest contest in caucus history," Iowa Republican Party Chairman Matt Strawn told the Associated Press.
The Iowa Republican Party this morning posted the certified results from the Jan. 3 vote, which were first reported by the Des Moines Register. The results did not include a statement of who won.
The outcome means Mitt Romney can no longer be considered the first non-incumbent Republican to win both the Iowa caucuses and the New Hampshire primary -- but it doesn't change the big-picture narrative of the GOP primary. Romney is leading in national polls on the GOP nomination, but his lead in South Carolina has tightened.
While Santorum is declaring himself the winner in Iowa, political observers say the loser could be the Iowa caucuses.
"This underscores the amateur and volunteer nature of the way the caucuses are run," said Dennis Goldford, a political scientist at Drake University in Des Moines.
"Amateur can be fine but amateurism is something else," he said in a telephone interview with USA TODAY. "The caucuses are bearing a weight that they were never designed to do. This does furnish additional ammunition to those who criticize the impact of the caucuses."
Steffen Schmidt, a political scientist at Iowa State University, said the caucuses are "mostly a media event."
"No delegates are selected," he told USA TODAY in an e-mail. "It's like a very extensive public opinion poll. Yet, we give it huge significance because it is the first event. The probability that Rick Santorum won and not Mitt Romney made no real difference because Romney was the untouchable front-runner in New Hampshire already."
Romney seemed braced for the news, issuing a news release this morning. "The results from Iowa caucus night revealed a virtual tie," he said.
Santorum's campaign issued a news release declaring himself the winner of the Iowa caucuses.
"We've had two early state contests with two winners - and the narrative that Governor Romney and the media have been touting of 'inevitability' has been destroyed," said Hogan Gidley, Santorum's communications director.
Hahaha oh snap! Mitt is now trailing Newt in S. Carolina 33% to 31%...wow...
