Upcoming Republican Primaries:

Iowa Caucus: Jan. 3
NH Primary: Jan. 10
SC Primary: Jan. 21
FL Primary: Jan. 31

Analysis: Most candidates have converged on Iowa to make the most of the remaining weeks until the nations first caucus.
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Upcoming Republican Debates:

•Date: December 10
•Place: Des Moines IA
•Sponsor: ABC News / Des Moines Register / Iowa Republican Party

•Date: December 15
•Place: Sioux City, IA
•Sponsor: FOX News / Iowa Republican Party

•Date: December 27
•Place: Des Moines, IA
•Sponsor: Ion TV / Newsmax

Analysis: The debate on Dec. 10 will be the first one since Herman Cain dropped out of the race and Newt Gingrich will be the focus of attention. Mitt Romney will try to portray him as a longtime Washington insider and a former lobbyist. Perry, Bachmann, and Santorum will all toot their conservative credentials and contrast them with Gingrich’s more liberal policies. Don’t be surprised if Romney gets attacked as well for being a flip-flopper on many conservative principals, especially after we saw from the FOX interview how much this accusation gets under Romney’s skin.
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LATEST POLLS:

IOWA (31 Delegates)

Newt Gingrich 27%,
Ron Paul 18%,
Mitt Romney 16%,
Michele Bachmann 13%, Rick Perry 9%,
Rick Santorum 6%,
Jon Huntsman, Jr. 4%, Gary Johnson 1%,
Someone else/Not sure 7%

•Poll date: December 3-5, 2011
•Poll source: Public Policy Polling
•Margin of error: ±4.1% •Sample size: 572

Analysis: Gingrich’s rise to the top in this staunchly conservative state has surprised many, but there’s no telling if he has a large enough ground operation to turn his impressive poll numbers into a victory on election day. The poll numbers for Ron Paul and Mitt Romney have pretty much remained steady for the past few months, seeming to indicate that the undecided voters and those that will break off from Gingrich, will end up dividing themselves amongst Bachmann, Santorum, and Perry. A poor showing in Iowa from any of the above mentioned threesome, could very well spell the end of their campaign.

NEW HAMPSHIRE (23 Delegates)

Mitt Romney 39%,
Newt Gingrich 23%,
Ron Paul 16%,
Jon Huntsman, Jr. 9%, Michele Bachmann 3%, Rick Perry 3%,
Herman Cain 2%,
Rick Santorum 1%, Undecided 4%

•Poll date: November 28-30, 2011
•Poll source: NBC News/Marist
•Margin of error: 3.7%
•Sample size: 696

Analysis: Romney is expected to win this primary for two main reasons. He’s well known throughout NH since he was the Governor of neighboring Massachusetts, and the  open primary system that allows independents to vote alongside republicans, is a major boost to the more moderate Romney. Gingrich and possibly Huntsman are the only ones with a real chance of defeating Romney in this primary. Conservative candidates have never done well in this primary, and there’s no reason to believe this time will be any different. A poor showing by Huntsman will bring his campaign to an end.

(Yechezkel Gordon – YWN)