Campaign 2012: Florida goes into Mitt Romney column

In the winner-takes-all state of Florida, the stakes were high and the battle was brutal. But in the end, former Massachusetts Governor Mitt Romney won it all and now heads to Nevada.

With 98 percent of Florida's precincts reporting, Romney was leading with 46% , Newt Gingrich had 32%, Rick Santorum had 13%, and Ron Paul came in fourth with 7% of the vote.

The Romney “Believe in America” campaign celebrated the win, writing to supporters:

Thank you, Florida! And thanks to all of you who have volunteered and supported our campaign to restore America.

This was a hard-earned victory, so thank you.

And while we celebrate this primary victory, we must not forget what this election is really about: defeating Barack Obama.

We now move on to Nevada — another state that has been devastated by President Obama’s failed leadership.

Across our nation today, 24 million Americans are struggling for work, 2.8 million Americans have lost their homes, and our national debt now exceeds $15 trillion. This is simply unacceptable. We can — and must — do much better.

Three years ago, President Obama told the American people that if he couldn’t get our economy turned around by 2012, he’d be looking at a one-term proposition. Well, he was right — it’s time to hold him accountable.

All eyes now turn to Saturday’s Nevada primary as the candidates leave Florida and head into that four-day marathon.