After finishing in fifth place in the Iowa caucus on Tuesday night and flopping badly in a series of debates, Gov. Rick Perry of Texas is bypassing New Hampshire -- which holds its primary this coming Tuesday -- to lay it all on the line on South Carolina, which hosts its primary on Jan. 21.

Perry surprised most pundits on Wednesday when he announced that he is staying in the race. The Texas governor sent out a Tweet in which he revealed he was headed to South Carolina to campaign there.

While most eyes are on the battle for the Republican presidential nomination and the upcoming session of the Florida Legislature which opens next week, the team behind U.S. Rep. Connie Mack, who is running for the Republican nomination to challenge Democrat incumbent U.S. Sen. Bill Nelson in 2012, continues to plan ahead for their campaign.

Jeff Cohen, Macks campaign manager, sent out a memo on Thursday to key supporters arguing that his candidate had great momentum in the race.

As the days tick down until Tuesday when New Hampshire voters hold the first presidential primary, former Gov. Mitt Romney of Massachusetts continues to lead over the pack of Republican presidential hopefuls in the Granite State.

U.S. Sen. John McCain of Arizona, the Republican presidential nominee who lost to Barack Obama in 2008 and two-time winner of the New Hampshire primary, announced on Wednesday he is backing former Gov. Mitt Romney of Massachusetts for president. McCain and Romney were rivals for the Republican presidential nomination back in 2008.

McCain -- along with his wife Cindy -- endorsed Romney at a campaign event in New Hampshire.

Iowans will head to almost 1,775 precincts across the Hawkeye State Tuesday night to caucus on which Republican hopeful will challenge President Barack Obama in November.

Recent polls show three of them in position to win Iowa, which leads the procession of state caucuses and primaries.

With only days to go until the Iowa caucus on Tuesday, three polls released on Thursday found the first formal contest between the Republican presidential hopefuls is very close -- with former U.S. Sen. Rick Santorum of Pennsylvania entering the muddled picture. Santorum had been pulling in single digits in the Hawkeye State in most polls taken in 2011.