Citrus Romney’s, but Newt keeps it close

INVERNESS — The margin was tighter than it was statewide, but Mitt Romney still swayed Citrus County Republican voters over Newt Gingrich in Tuesday’s presidential preference primary.

CATHY KAPULKA

Jean Lee exits Precinct 405 at the Citrus County Auditorium in Inverness after voting in the presidential primary Tuesday.

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MATTHEW BECK

The West Citrus Elks Lodge in Homosassa was one of many precincts where voters cast ballots in the presidential primary Tuesday.

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Romney took 41.6 percent of the Citrus vote to Gingrich’s 35.5 percent. Rick Santorum was third with 13.7 percent and Ron Paul fourth with 7.6 percent.

The five remaining Republicans on the ballot, who had all dropped from the race prior to the Florida primary, split the remaining vote.

More than 21,000 Citrus Republicans voted, or 51.7 percent. About half of those voters cast ballots in early voting or by absentee.

Michele Klemm, chairwoman of the Citrus County Republican Executive Committee, was pleased with the voter turnout because it showed Republican interest in the race.

“I knew it was going to be close,” Klemm said. “All of us Republicans think and believe the same way.”

Romney supporter Debbie Ressler was thrilled with the results.

“I thought Romney would win, but I wasn’t so sure about Citrus County,” she said. “I thought it would be closer than that.”

Dick Windle, Citrus County chairman of the Gingrich campaign, said his candidate did well in the face of Romney having the upper hand in advertising spending.

“When he first came into the state I thought he had a chance to win,” Windle said. “The Romney campaign had a five-to-one ratio in ads. That ratio is tough to overcome.”

Florida was penalized half its 100 delegates by the National Republican Committee for moving its primary from late March to January.

Ressler said that, while losing delegates could hurt the state during the Republican National Convention in August in Tampa, the primary’s timing gives Romney momentum heading into the rest of the primary schedule.

And Florida’s loss hurts the Gingrich campaign, she said.

“He was tested,” Ressler said. “He lost the test.”

Chronicle reporter Mike Wright can be reached at 352-563-3228 or mwright@chronicleonline.com.