Tracking the Candidates' Post Super-Tuesday Strategies

Super Tuesday wasn't a great day for any of the candidates, but it wasn't so bad that any of them will drop out. What's next for each of them?

Super Tuesday wasn't a great day for any of the candidates, but it wasn't so bad that any of them will drop out. The next votes aren't as big -- Kansas's caucus is Saturday, while Alabama, Mississippi, and Hawaii vote March 13 -- but the three insurgent candidates need to win things in order to start looking like, you know, winners. Here's what Newt Gingrich, Rick Santorum, and Ron Paul are doing to convince you they can be the conservative alternative, and what Mitt Romney's doing to convince you it's too late for them.

Newt Gingrich

No more media: Usually when Gingrich condemns the media, it's all a show, but not now, The New York Times' Trip Gabriel reports. "Mr. Gingrich was known for welcoming reporters’ questions almost daily, but no longer. He has been less available for this back and forth even as the size of the traveling press corps shrinks to a rump of embeds for the national television networks and a few online and print reporters."

No more Kansas: Gingrich has given up on Kansas. The day after the vote, his campaign cancelled appearances planned for Friday in Topeka and Wichita, the Topeka Capital-Journal's Andy Marso reports. Six stops total have been scrapped in favor of spending resources in the South.

All South all the time: “Everything from Spartanburg all the way to Texas, they all need to go for Gingrich,” the candidate's spokesman said according to NBC News. (That can remain technically true despite Santorum's victories Tuesday: You can take I-20 all the way from Spartanburg to Dallas and cut out Tennessee.)

Rick Santorum

Midwest love: "We have to do well in Kansas -- no, we have to WIN in Kansas, and win big," Santorum said according to NBC News' Mike O'Brien. Santorum will be in the state Wednesday.

Ads in the South: Tomorrow, Santorum's TV and radio ads go up in Mississippi and Alabama, Politico's Alexander Burns reports.

Ron Paul

Still fighting for those little caucuses: Paul is focusing on Hawaii's March 13 caucus. So far, focusing on caucus states hasn't resulted in a single victory, and aides are looking at whether they got "overconfident," Politico's James Hohmann reports.

Positive message: Paul's campaign released an ad that will go up in Hawaii Thursday and run through the primary. It's a positive one calling Paul a "visionary."

Mitt Romney

Not committed to Kansas: Romney hasn't said whether he'll be in the state before its Saturday vote.

On air in Alabama: Romney has bought $165,145 in ads to air in Mobile and Birmingham, Politico reports. Santorum has only bought $9,170 on Alabama cable.

Convincing the other guys they have no hope: Romney said it would take an "act of God" for either of the other candidates to get enough delegates to win. The Washington Post's Karen Tumulty reports the great god known as Math confirms this to be true. "Going into Tuesday’s balloting, Romney had just over 200 delegates, according to Associated Press estimates — well short of what he needs to secure the nomination but more than twice as many as Santorum, who was running second at just over 90 delegates. Gingrich and Rep. Ron Paul (Tex.) were far behind. Even if one of them were to begin performing far better than he has to date, it is difficult to see how he could make up the gap."