Gingrich takes South Carolina

With three different states counted in the Republican presidential primaries, three candidates… With three different states counted in the Republican presidential primaries, three candidates can now claim victory.

Former House Speaker Newt Gingrich took the South Carolina Republican primary on Saturday with 40.4 percent of the vote. He previously placed fourth in the Iowa caucuses and New Hampshire primary.

Mitt Romney, a former Massachusetts governor, came in second place with 27.8 percent in the Palmetto State. He won in New Hampshire and came in a close second in Iowa.

Former Pennsylvania Sen. Rick Santorum, who came in first in the Iowa caucuses, finished in third place in South Carolina, receiving 17 percent of the vote. Texas Rep. Ron Paul, who finished in a surprising second place in New Hampshire behind Romney, garnered 13 percent of the vote in S.C.

Since the Iowa caucus at the beginning of January, the number of Republican presidential candidates has been whittled down from seven to four.

Two days before the South Carolina vote, Texas Gov. Rick Perry dropped out of the race and threw his support behind Gingrich.

From Jan. 17 to Jan. 21, the Gallup national poll had Romney in first place at 30 percent, with Gingrich trailing behind at 25 percent. Paul and Santorum received 13 and 12 percent support respectively.

The four remaining candidates will travel south to Florida for the next primary on Jan. 31.