PROFILES: Romney, Santorum and Paul top Iowa finishers

Jan 4, 2012, 8:36 GMT

Washington - Conventional political wisdom holds there are only three tickets out of Iowa with the top three candidates in the first-in-the-nation US presidential nominating contest able to continue campaigning another day.

Results early Wednesday in the Republican Party caucuses in the Midwestern state showed Mitt Romney with a razor-thin victory over Rick Santorum, both at 25 per cent of the vote, followed by Ron Paul, with 21.5 per cent.

Here's a look at the top finishers:

MITT ROMNEY: Romney, 64, served as governor of Massachusetts from 2003 to 2007 but has spent most of his life in business at the consulting firm Bain Capital. He has focused heavily on his business experience during his campaign, saying it puts him in the best position to turn around the faltering US economy.

While governor, he oversaw a revamping of the state's health care system that President Barack Obama pointed to as a model when creating his own national health care law. The law has been extremely unpopular with Republicans, and Romney's version has become his Achilles' heel. He contends that his plan was best for the state and not for the entire country and that he would repeal Obama's plan.

Romney waged an unsuccessful bid for the Republican nomination four years ago, ultimately losing to Senator John McCain. He was seen by many political commentators as the heir apparent of the party establishment but has been slow to garner support from the party's conservatives, who have instead backed a series of other front runners.

RICK SANTORUM: The former senator from the eastern state of Pennsylvania is among the more conservative candidates in the race. The 53-year-old has focused most of his attention on Iowa, visiting all 99 of the state's counties, but has struggled to gain momentum on the national stage.

Santorum appealed to Iowa's many evangelical Christians and has made his handicapped toddler daughter and support for an anti-abortion agenda part of his standard campaign speech. In addressing supporters late Tuesday, he also focussed heavily on his Italian grandfather, who spent years working in Pennsylvania coal mines.

Although Santorum served two six-year terms in the Senate from the swing state of Pennsylvania, he was trounced for re-election in 2006, losing by 18 percentage points to his Democratic challenger in an election that saw the centre-left party regain control of both houses of Congress.

RON PAUL: A Texas congressman known for his libertarian views, Paul, 76, has a devoted following. Paul has presented himself as an alternative to the typical candidates by positioning himself as an isolationist on foreign policy and for calling for strict limits on the size of government.

Paul, who worked as a doctor before entering politics, has run for president twice before. He has become something of a celebrity among those advocating smaller government, and his son, Rand, was elected to the Senate on similar positions.

A recent rise in the polls has propelled him to front runner status in Iowa but brought with it increased scrutiny of his past, including alleged racist remarks in newsletters that bore his name in the 1990s. He claims he was unaware of the content.