Two new polls today show a close race in South Carolina, the location of the third Republican presidential battleground in the race to replace pro-abortion President Barack Obama. Meanwhile, Mitt Romney holds a solid lead in Florida.

With Iowa and New Hampshire having given the former Massachusetts governor victories in the two traditional early primary election states, Romney now holds a slim two-point lead over Newt Gingrich in South Carolina, according to a new survey from the Insider Advantage polling firm. Conducted for the Augusta Chronicle and The Savannah Morning News newspaper, Romney has 23 percent support, and Gingrich has 21 percent.

After the former Speaker, former Pennsylvania Sen. Rick Santorum has 14 percent, Texas Rep. Ron Paul has 13 percent, former Utah Gov. Jon Huntsman has 7 percent, and Texas Gov.

South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley endorsed Mitt Romney for president Friday, saying he has the executive experience in the private and public sectors that proves he can deal "with a broken Washington."

The first-term governor offered "all of my support" to the former Massachusetts governor during an interview on Fox News. She plans to hold a campaign event with Romney Friday afternoon in South Carolina.

"Now more than ever, we need someone that has the leadership to deal with a broken Washington," Haley said, adding that Romney to his credit is "not part of the chaos" in the nation's capital.

Haley cited Romney's experience turning companies around and shepherding the 2002 Winter Olympics. She also said it "says a lot" that he was able to govern effectively and balance the budget in Boston while Democrats were in charge of the legislature...

COLUMBIA, S.C. – The federal government filed a lawsuit Monday seeking to stop implementation of South Carolina's tough new immigration law, arguing that the legislation that requires law officers to check suspects' immigration status is unconstitutional.

Federal officials and state officials had met to discuss the issue a week ago.

The government wants a judge to stop enforcement of the legislation, which requires that officers call federal immigration officials if they suspect someone is in the country illegally following a stop for something else, U.S. Attorney Bill Nettles told The Associated Press.

"The Department of Justice has many important tasks," Nettles said. "Two of those important tasks are the defense of the constitution and ensuring equality is afforded to all."

The lawsuit filed in federal court names Gov. Nikki Haley as a defendant.

If Sarah Palin and Mitt Romney decide to run for president in 2012, they'll have some powerful friends in the early states that are key to winning the GOP nomination.

Mike Huckabee? Not so much.

All of it is part of the presidential election fallout from Tuesday’s primaries in Iowa and South Carolina, two states so pivotal in the GOP nomination process that even their off-year state elections are carefully examined for their relevance to the next presidential race.

Both Palin and Romney backed the first-place finishers in the high-profile governors races in the two states—former GOP Gov. Terry Branstad in Iowa and state Rep. Nikki Haley in South Carolina—endorsements that are likely to pay dividends in the event either Republican runs for president in 2012...

Washington (AP) - Once, California Democrats led the way to a year of the women. Now, nearly two decades later, Republicans hope it's their turn.

Meg Whitman won the party's nomination for California governor on Tuesday and Carly Fiorina will carry the GOP banner into the fall campaign for a Senate seat, a pair of wealthy businesswomen and first-time candidates running against veteran politicians in a year of palpable anti-establishment sentiment.

In next-door Nevada, a third woman contender, Sharron Angle, won the right to oppose Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid in the fall...