George W. Bush John McCain From January 3 to June 3, 2008, voters of the Republican Party chose their nominee for president in the 2008 United States presidential election.

In a crowded primary of several prominent Republicans eyeing the nomination, former New York City mayor Rudy Giuliani was the early frontrunner.

[2] However, former Arkansas Governor Mike Huckabee won the Iowa Caucuses as he gained momentum just two months prior to the primary.

He was officially nominated at the 2008 Republican National Convention on September 4, 2008, but went on to lose the general election to Barack Obama.

[3] The vast majority of primaries were of the "winner-take-all" variety, and convention rules meant that no one with less than five states in their "pockets" would be allowed to have their names placed in nomination.

Arizona Arkansas Massachusetts Texas Tennessee Maryland California New York Kansas Illinois Virginia Colorado Wisconsin Republican candidates in the 2008 U.S. presidential election campaigned for the nomination of their party in a series of primary elections and caucus events.

The Democratic takeover of both houses of Congress and President Bush's unpopularity were strong issues for the GOP field.

In December, staunch illegal-immigration opponent Tom Tancredo and businessman John H. Cox also left the race.

The final averaged polling results from Real Clear Politics showed Mike Huckabee at 30%, Romney at 27%, McCain and Thompson tied at 12%, Paul at 7%, and Giuliani at 6%.

After the results, Huckabee decided to focus on the South Carolina primary, while both McCain and Romney went to Michigan where polls showed a competitive race between the two.

With different winners in Iowa and New Hampshire – and Mitt Romney taking the lower-profile Wyoming caucus – the January 15 Michigan primary loomed as an important battle.

[17] As the Michigan race entered its final days, McCain gained some notoriety by sending out mailers there and in South Carolina attacking Romney's tax record and touting his own.

Michigan had by far the nation's largest unemployment rate, at 7.4 percent, and was continuing to lose jobs from its historical manufacturing base.

Nevada was not subject to the Republican party cutting in half the number of delegates the state can send to the national convention, and neither was South Carolina.

RealClearPolitics reported that the average support from polls placed McCain in the lead with 27%, followed by Huckabee with 25%, Romney with 15%, Thompson with 15%, Paul with 4%, and Giuliani with 3%.

Rudy Giuliani campaigned heavily in Florida, which he expected to use as his "launch pad" for a "strong showing" on Super Tuesday.

Polls taken before the primary showed that John McCain was the slight front runner over Mitt Romney.

McCain was able to ride a last-minute endorsement by then-Republican Governor Charlie Crist[28] to a five-point victory on January 29.

[30] (The state's delegate total had been reduced by half due to RNC rules about primaries held before February 5.

I'd forestall the launch of a national campaign and, frankly, I'd be making it easier for Senator Clinton or Obama to win.

He focused on his opposition to abortion and gun control, as well as his support for lower taxes and free-market health care solutions.

[55] On February 14, Mitt Romney officially endorsed McCain and asked his approximately 280 delegates to support him at the national convention.

[56][57] A few days later, McCain was endorsed by former President George H. W. Bush, in a move intended to shore up his support among base party elements.

On March 4, Super Tuesday 2, McCain managed to win a large number of Evangelical voters along with his usual independent and veteran supporters.

John McCain officially clinched the Republican presidential nomination on March 4, 2008, sweeping the primaries in Ohio, Texas, Rhode Island, and Vermont.

Each state's two members of the Republican National Committee, and the party chairs of each U.S. state and the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, American Samoa, Guam, the U.S. Virgin Islands, and Northern Mariana Islands are the only automatic delegates to the party's national convention.

Five states – Wyoming, New Hampshire, Michigan, South Carolina, and Florida – moved their primaries ahead and were subsequently stripped of one-half of their apportioned delegates by the RNC.

[80] This punishment was eventually the same as Democratic procedures though that party originally decided to strip all delegates from offending states Michigan and Florida before seating half.

The Nevada state convention was held on April 26, 2008, but was suspended by party officials before delegates were elected.

The executive board of the Nevada Republican Party met on July 25, 2008, and appointed all 34 delegates and 31 alternates.