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Santorum fails to give Romney his support

Conservative backers of the former Republican candidate Rick Santorum are reluctant to support Mitt Romney.

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Conservative backers of the former Republican candidate Rick Santorum are reluctant to support Mitt Romney.

Their champion pointedly refused yesterday (Wednesday) to give his backing to the Republican front-runner.

Santorum's withdrawal from the race leaves Romney with a clear path to the nomination. But for some of his backers there remain serious doubts about the relatively moderate former Massachusetts governor.

Aides to the former Pennsylvania senator were speaking to the Romney camp about the possibility of an endorsement.

But they are thought to be demanding a prominent role at the August convention in return for a public blessing.

Senior Republicans fear that a sullen base may refuse to campaign for  Romney, depriving him of vital volunteers in key battleground states.

Some of the major social conservative groups who propelled Santorum to victory in 11 primary contests are withholding their support from Romney until he is more aggressive in his opposition to abortion and support for traditional marriage.

Tony Perkins, the president of the Family Research Council, issued a stark warning that opposition to President Barack Obama would not be enough to rally conservatives around Romney.

"It's difficult to back a candidate our constituents don't believe in," he said.

He warned that many activists were now turning their focus to winning control of the Senate in November.

In more encouraging news for Mr Romney, the conservative Republican governors of Florida, Louisiana and Pennsylvania all threw their weight behind him after Santorum's exit.

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