LIVE UPDATES: Having taken first prize in Guam and the Northern Marianas Islands over the weekend, Mitt Romney is looking to sweep the island nations with a victory in the Hawaii caucus on Tuesday.
PolicyMic is covering the primary live, and will be regularly updating this page as new information becomes available. Stay tuned.
(All Updates in EST. Hit 'Refresh' for the most updated results. See Here For Live Mississippi Coverage, Here For Live Alabama Coverage, Here For Live American Samoa Coverage):
Wednesday 6:15 a.m. Mitt Romney has won the Hawaii Caucus, salvaging a victory after Santorum swept in the South. Final tallies: Romney 45.4% (4,250 votes), Santorum 25.3% (2,369 votes), Paul 18.3% (1,712 votes), and Gingrich 11% (1,034 votes). Six delegates and nine super delegates all said they would support Romney.
Tuesday 10:51 p.m. We're getting ready for the Hawaii Caucus results to start coming in. Santorum just swept Alabama & Mississippi.
9:19 p.m. Still no reports from Hawaii. The waves have been small all day so all the surfers shouldn't have any trouble getting to the polls.
LIVE PIC FROM PIPELINE
7:45 p.m. Candidates Didn't Campaign in Hawaii: Although none of the candidates have made a campaign stop in the islands, Ronnie Paul, Elizabeth Santorum and Matt Romney crossed the Pacific to rally support for their fathers heading into Tuesday night's GOP caucus.
Newt Gingrich, who spoke to the Maui Tea Party in September, kept his attention fixed on Alabama and Mississippi primaries that could make or break his bid for the nomination.
3:50 p.m. Paul Raising Most Money in Hawaii: Paul has raised more campaign contributions from Hawaii residents than any of his Republican rivals.
2:00 p.m. Voting in the Hawaii caucuses ends at 2 a.m., with initial results expected shortly thereafter. State party officials say results should begin coming in around 10 p.m. and should be complete around midnight local time (5 a.m. EDT).
Both POLITICO and Google will be providing minute-by-minute live updates for the first-ever Hawaii Republican caucus, with information on which counties are reporting, what percent of the votes are in and which candidate is currently in the lead.
11:20 a.m. Romney Will Clinch the GOP Nomination in the South? “I think it’s over if he wins here,” said Mississippi Gov. Phil Bryant of Romney after a Monday rally with comedian Jeff Foxworthy at a trucking company outside Jackson. “At that point how do you go and say, ‘I’m the most conservative candidate’ if you can’t win the most conservative state in the country?"
9:55 a.m. Mitt Romney Dominating: According to Intrade, a site that speculates on the outcomes of non-sports-related future events, Romney has a 95.5% chance of winning the state. Closest compeitor Ron Paul has a 2% chance of winning.
9:30 a.m. Voting in the caucus will occur from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m. local time. Caucuses will not be mass meetings, they will be organized as a party-run primary election.
Sunday 11:35 p.m. Rick Santorum's oldest child, Elizabeth (20 years old), will go to Hawaii to stump for him ahead of the state's caucuses next week, Santorum announced this weekend.
11:30 p.m. The Washington Times reported Ron Paul has raised more contributions from Hawaii residents than his rivals. He hosted an event in advance of the state's caucus: "On March 13, voters in Hawaii will head to their local caucus to choose which Republican they want to see take on Barack Obama in November," Paul said in an e-mail. "And with so much at stake this Election Year, this decision is not something voters should take lightly."
Sunday 11:20 p.m. During the 2008 presidential race, Hawaii's GOP delegates were selected at the state's Republican convention. GOP presidential candidate Sen. John McCain of Arizona ultimately got all 20.
THE BACKGROUND: Because of its small population and small Republican registered voter minority, Ron Paul stands a chance against Mitt Romney and Rick Santorum, who will be focusing their attention on primaries in the South, in Alabama and Mississippi.
As the Washington Times' Daniel de Gracia writes, the psychological victory of winning Obama’s home state would be a great victory for the Paul campaign.
None of the candidates has visited Hawaii, and none has a strong direct connection to the islands. Romney's campaign is the most visible, thanks to the state's significant Mormon population. Mitt Romney's son Matt visited Oahu in December to generate excitement for the Romney campaign.
A recent RealClearPolitics poll shows Romney with a clear advantage (a +16 spread over Gingrich and Paul). Santorum has almost no shot to win there.
This represents the first year in recent memory that Hawaii is relevant. Conservatives face tough prospects in November (Hawaii is President Obama's home), but a change to procedure this year intended to create enthusiasm for the Repulican party may end up making Hawaii relevant.
"What we want to do is get more people involved in the system," Hawaii GOP chairman David Chang said. "We want that person to come out and vote. And then they'll realize that their vote will count because the results will ultimately determine which presidential candidate will get our delegates."
Republican caucuses in the past were informal and votes for presidential candidates weren't even counted. The state's GOP delegates were chosen at the state convention months later. Now, votes will be tallied on caucus day. Candidates will gain support in proportion to their vote totals. The other three are "superdelegates" who may vote for anyone at the national convention this summer.
David Chang, the state's GOP chairman, said an estimated a 5,000- to 10,000 will turnout for the caucuses. Roughly 45,000 Republicans voted in the past few GOP primaries.
Republicans will vote between 6 and 8 p.m. Tuesday at locations across the state. Voters must join the party to participate.
Hawaii Democrats will hold their presidential preference poll at 7 p.m. Wednesday to formally back Obama for re-election.
Photo Credit: Gage Skidmore
