- The Washington Times - Wednesday, March 2, 2016

Former House Speaker Newt Gingrich said Wednesday that GOP presidential front-runner Donald Trump is “way ahead” in the race for the party’s nomination, but Mr. Trump’s rivals still have the right to keep going at this point.

“It’s fair to have a very tough, very hard fight over the next couple weeks, and I think it’d be wrong to ask anybody — Rubio, Kasich, Cruz — to back off at this stage,” Mr. Gingrich, a 2012 GOP presidential candidate, said on Fox Business Network. “It’s not done. Trump’s way ahead, but it’s not done.”

“It’s perfectly legitimate for the folks who don’t want him, to do everything they can for the next couple weeks,” he said.

Mr. Trump racked up seven wins on Super Tuesday, compared to three for Sen. Ted Cruz of Texas and one for Sen. Marco Rubio of Florida. Ohio Gov. John Kasich hasn’t won a state yet, but he is pinning his hopes on a strong performance in his home state on March 15.

Retired neurosurgeon Ben Carson hasn’t finished better than fourth in any state so far, but he has indicated he plans to continue in the race as well.

“They have a big chance in Florida; they have a big chance in Ohio,” Mr. Gingrich said. “The fact that [Trump] faded, for example, in Virginia and [in] the last week, almost all of the people who were making a late decision picked somebody other than Trump. All these things have to worry the Trump team a little bit.”

• David Sherfinski can be reached at dsherfinski@washingtontimes.com.

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