Filed by KOSU News in Politics.
February 7, 2012

Welcome to our live blog of the Republican presidential primary in three states: Colorado and Minnesota are holding caucuses and Missouri is holding a non-binding GOP presidential primary.

What does that mean in Missouri? The primary is known as a “beauty contest” because delegates will ultimately be determined by caucuses beginning March 17. But, according to polls, the state could buck Mitt Romney and favor Rick Santorum.

So stay with us throughout the evening and refresh this page to get the latest updates. (If you want real-time results, head here.)

Update at 6:57 p.m. ET. Real-Time Results:

We’ll be providing real-time results on this page.

Update at 6:47 p.m. ET. Does Missouri Matter?:

A “beauty contest” it may be, writes NPR’s Alan Greenblatt, but for Rick Santorum today’s primary is a big deal. And it has more to do with the potential to have conservatives line up behind him and not Newt Gingrich. It has to do with creating enough momentum that he rises up to become “the true alternative for mainstream Republicans dissatisfied with front-runner Mitt Romney.”

Alan reports:

“‘Beauty contest or no beauty contest, Santorum has a real chance to win two out of the three races on Tuesday,’ says Tom Jensen, director of Public Policy Polling, which has surveyed Missouri Republicans repeatedly. ‘Even if that’s pointless from a delegate standpoint, it might have a huge effect on uniting conservatives nationally around him.’”

The Washington Post agrees, saying Santorum needs to win two states to make that case:

“If Santorum wins one of the two states, it’s more of a mixed bag. If he wins Missouri, he can argue that he can beat Romney in a head-to-head matchup (Newt Gingrich isn’t on the ballot). If he wins Minnesota, he can argue that this was a state Romney carried handily in 2008.

“But without both, his case won’t be as convincing, especially since late polling showed him winning both.”

[Copyright 2012 National Public Radio]