Candidates criss-cross Florida in search of last-minute support

TAMPA - The Republican front-runners are crossing the state looking for last minute votes in the big Florida Republican primary, slated for Tuesday.

With just hours to go before the polls open in the Sunshine State, it looks like Mitt Romney is gaining momentum among likely Republican voters.

A new Quinnipiac University poll shows the former Massachusetts Governor heading into the Presidential Preference Primary with a 14 point lead over former House Speaker Newt Gingrich.

Romney is favored by 43 percent compared to Gingrich's 29 percent. 

Ron Paul and Rick Santorum each have about 11% support.

Oh sure. Moving the primaries up before February 5 cost some delegates to the Tampa Convention, but that hasn't given the front-runners any reason to steer clear of here.

"Wow, this has been fun, this last ten days or so in Florida," said Mitt Romney, whose poll numbers obviously put a spring in his step on this final day of campaigning. 

The former Massachusetts Governor made his just-after-dawn delivery of talking points in Jacksonville, with topics ranging from fiscal responsibility to foreign policy.

"My view is American strength is essential to the world," he said.  "And its essential for us -- and we should stand by our allies and our friends like Israel -- and all the other nations that have been with us committing our futures together."

Meantime across town, former Speaker of the House Newt Gingrich took aim at the President -- and what he termed his big government:

"So I want to run as the balanced budget, smaller government, lower taxes, less regulation, paycheck candidate," he said before a raucous crowd of supporters. "Obama is the best 'Food Stamp' president in American history."

He continued noting that during the current administration, more people have been added to the food stamp program than at any time previous.

Rick Santorum, who jumped off the campaign trail to be with his sick 3-year-old daughter this weekend in Pennsylvania, is pointing to a "major announcement" this afternoon in Missouri.

Ron Paul, meanwhile, has taken his message to Maine.

The front-runners continue hyper-local bay-area campaigns.  A 1:00 Gingrich-fest is slated for Tampa and Romney rolls into Dunedin at 2:00.

They will both take off from here to Central Florida, with Gingrich gathering supporters on election eve in Orlando, and Romney wrapping up his spate of speeches in The Villages.