Romney poised to win nod in Texas primary

Texas primary voters were expected to award Republican Mitt Romney enough delegates Tuesday night to clinch the presidential nomination, analysts said. Going over the top in Texas would make the former Massachusetts governor the second Republican presidential hopeful in a row to win enough delegates in the Lone Star State to be the party's standard-bearer. John McCain clinched the delegate count in the 2008 Texas primary. Romney, the only Republican candidate still actively campaigning, is between 79 and 107 votes shy of the 1,144 delegates he needs for the Republican National Convention, to be held in Tampa, Fla., the week of Aug. 27. Texas has 155 convention delegates at stake. Some Texas Republicans told the Houston Chronicle Romney's lack of attention to the state could prolong the contest one more week, when California and New Jersey hold their primaries. "He hasn't had a single rally or meeting with grassroots," Texas Republican Party Chairman Steve Munisteri complained to the newspaper. "I think he takes Texas for granted." Southern Methodist University political science Professor Cal Jillson told the Fort Worth Star-Telegram he believed "the vast majority of the Republicans will support Romney." Ron Paul, who stopped actively campaigning May 14, may pull anywhere from an upper single-digit percentage to somewhere in the double digits Tuesday, Jillson said.