All eyes on Illinois after Santorum wins in Alabama, Mississippi

Updated: April 15, 2012 8:17AM

GOP Presidential challenger Rick Santorum won two big primaries in Alabama and Mississippi Tuesday.

“We did it again,” Santorum told cheering fans in Lafayette, La.

Those unforecasted wins blow wind into Santorum’s sails as he heads to Arlington Heights Friday looking for another upset in Illinois.

“All eyes are going to turn to Illinois,” said Santorum’s Illinois Chairman, former state Rep. Al Salvi. “I think in Mississippi and Alabama, the exit polls showed women came out for Rick Santorum. I think he’s the beneficiary of President Obama’s big mistake in mandating that private employers pay for birth control.”

The other Republican candidates are also headed to Illinois. Former Speaker of the House Newt Gingrich, who was running a close second to Santorum in both states, headlines events in Rosemont and Palatine Wednesday.

But Santorum Illinois Campaign Director Jon Zahm said Gingrich’s losses Tuesday make this “a two-man race as he heads to Missouri and Illinois.”

Much of Illinois’ Republican establishment has signed on to front-runner Mitt Romney’s campaign. Sen. Mark Kirk, state Treasurer Dan Rutherford and state GOP Chairman Patrick Brady are all on board.

Romney’s campaign really hoped to win one of the two big Southern states up for grabs Tuesday. But he is better-positioned heading into Illinois.

In roughly half the states so far in primaries or caucuses, the conservative wing of the Republican Party is defying the establishment and opting for Santorum’s more-conservative-on-social-issues message.

“A lot of the establishment Republicans that I know that endorsed Romney are having second thoughts — if they could take it back, they would,” Salvi said. “A lot of ’em, I think, will end up voting for Santorum.”

If Romney goes to the Billy Goat Tavern and tries to act all Chicago by ordering a cheeseburger, it may fall as flat as he did by talking about eating grits in Alabama and Mississippi.

Santorum’s effort in Illinois is led by Zahm, Salvi and former state Rep. Penny Pullen.

Santorum noted he had “all the establishment” against him in Mississippi and won anyway.

Santorum failed to field delegates in four of Illinois’ 18 congressional districts, though he stands a good chance of winning some, especially Downstate.

After Friday rallies at Hersey High School and Christian Liberty Academy in Arlington Heights, he is set to embark on a Saturday swing through Downstate.

There were 107 Republican National Convention delegates at stake on Tuesday, 47 in Alabama, 37 in Mississippi, 17 in Hawaii caucuses and six more in caucuses in American Samoa.

Contributing: Sun-Times wires

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