WASHINGTON: Mitt Romney clinched the Republican presidential nomination with a win in the Texas primary, a triumph of endurance for a candidate who fought hard to win over skeptical conservative voters he must now fire up for the campaign against President Barack Obama.
According to the Associated Press count, Romney surpassed the 1,144 delegates needed to win the nomination by winning at least 97 delegates in Tuesday's Texas Republican presidential primary.
Romney, who came up short in the Republican presidential race four years ago, outlasted a carousel of Republican rivals who dropped out of the state-by-state primary contest. None of his former rivals actively campaigned in Texas.
The former Massachusetts governor has reached the nomination milestone with a steady message of concern about the US economy, a campaign organization that dwarfed those of his Republican foes and a fundraising operation second only to that of Obama.
Romney would be the first Mormon to be nominated for president by a major party. His religion has been less of an issue than it was during his failed bid four years ago.
Romney must now energize conservatives who still doubt him, while persuading undecided voters that he can do a better job fixing the nation's struggling economy than Obama.
"We did it!" Romney proclaimed in a message to supporters, noting that "it's only the beginning."
But Romney's triumph was partially overshadowed by celebrity real estate mogul Donald Trump, who has tried to stoke doubts about whether Obama was born in the US.
As the primary votes were tallied in Texas, Romney was at a fundraiser in Las Vegas with Trump on Tuesday night where about 200 people paid thousands of dollars to attend the event at the Trump International Hotel.
Romney will continue his push to raise money with fundraisers this week in wealthy California enclaves like Hillsborough, near San Francisco, and Beverly Hills. He has at least one major fundraising event every day for the rest of the week, as well as a series of smaller events.
In Obama, Romney will face a well-funded candidate with a proven campaign team in an election that will be heavily influenced by the economy.
Romney's campaign went on the attack over the economy Tuesday, releasing a Web video citing the Obama administration's loan-guarantee investments in four renewable-energy firms that lost money and laid off workers.
The message — "President Obama is fundamentally hostile to job creators" — has been a theme of the Romney campaign since he launched his presidential bid.
"We need to have presidents who understand how this economy works," Romney told reporters Tuesday. "Sometimes I just don't think he understands what it takes to help people.
I know he wants to help, but he doesn't know what he's got to do."
But the focus Tuesday was on Trump, who once led polls of Republican primary voters while he was toying with running for president. Trump endorsed Romney just before the February Nevada caucuses.
FROM: The ASSOCIATED PRESS
Romney is first Mormon presidential nominee
