Former Pennsylvania Senator Rick Santorum showcased his conservative credentials in the primaries yesterday by picking up slim underdog wins in Mississippi and Alabama.

Conventional wisdom would dictate that these Southern contests, which took place in former House Speaker Newt Gingrich’s proverbial backyard, should have been easy for the fellow Southerner to capture. Gingrich hails from Georgia and has staked his campaign on the Dixie states. However, he’s only won two, those were South Carolina and his home turf, Georgia. 

And while there are indeed other contests of the evening, namely Hawaii, the big story remains Santorum’s narrow victories in the South. Even though he came out ahead, these states use proportional representation, meaning that the GOP delegates are doled out proportionally to the vote-getters. Thus, the delegate count from last night was essentially a three-way tie between Santorum, Gingrich and former Massachusetts Governor Mitt Romney.

Santorum spoke before the news of Mississippi had broken, and during his speech, he was notified of the win. He seemed surprised. His wife leaned in to confirm the big victory and he stated, “We did?” reinforcing the notion that he may not have anticipated a win in a state where he was outspent and a definite underdog.  The conservative and religious nature of these Southern states, however, are exactly where the former Senator fits in best.  His victory speech was placed in Louisiana, one of the next hurdles he’ll have to jump. Forethought and optic thinking shows that he plans on being in the race a while.

Gingrich’s disappointing 2nd-place finishes are bad news for his campaign, however one examines it. He has little to no chance of winning a state from today forward. In addition, he’s staked his entire campaign on the theme of $2.50 per gallon gasoline, a cheap pandering scheme that fits in with his increasingly populist rhetoric. In fact, he even said the words “People’s campaign” tonight, reminiscent of a Progressive-era prairie populist. He’s grabbing more and more at straws. Gingrich also mentioned his faith in “science and technology” during his speech, two rarely heard words in a GOP contest.   

Last night’s results also brought into question, once again, how strong of a frontrunner Romney is. The media and party elites swoon for his candidacy, but clearly the conservative base who actually vote and drive the party are less than satisfied with him.