Romney's Iowa poll victory a "big start"

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Mitt Romney on Sunday called his victory in the Republican Iowa straw poll a "big start" toward winning his party's presidential nomination and said the no-show by his main national rivals only enhanced the win.

But two others rivals who finished second and third in Saturday's nonbinding poll in Ames, Iowa -- former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee and Sen. Sam Brownback of Kansas -- said they would not be scared out of the race.

Romney, the former governor of Massachusetts, won 31.5 percent of the vote with Huckabee getting 18 percent and Brownback 15 percent.

The straw poll is a fundraising event for the state Republican party -- voters must buy a $35 ticket.

But in the past, it has given some idea of candidates' strength leading to the Iowa caucuses, the country's first step in the nominating process early next year.

"It's a big start getting ready for the caucuses," Romney said of his victory on "Fox News Sunday." "You want to do well in the straw poll so that you can build the organization, get your fundraising machine under way, make sure that your message connects with the people of Iowa."

But Huckabee and Brownback, the two most vocal anti-abortion candidates in the field who have attacked Romney for his changing stances on abortion, were heartened by their showing in the field of 11 candidates.

Huckabee, who spent much less than Romney in getting out his supporters, called Saturday "a great day" that puts his campaign in the first tier of candidates.

"It wasn't just that we surprised people with a second showing," Huckabee said on CBS' "Face the Nation." "It's that we did it with so few resources. I mean, this really was feeding the 5,000 with two fish and five loaves."

"I think we are still in a position to be able to win," Brownback said on ABC's "This Week." "Our performance yesterday at the straw poll, third, puts us in position to be able to do, really, I think, pretty well in the caucuses."

Romney had been a heavy favorite to win after the other top three Republican candidates nationally -- former New York Mayor Rudy Giuliani, Arizona Sen. John McCain and former Tennessee Sen. Fred Thompson -- skipped Saturday's poll.

But even though his chief rivals were not in the field, Romney threw his strong financial and organizational clout into the first test in the long road to the November 2008 election.

Romney said he thought the lack of other major candidates had enhanced his victory.

"I think if they thought they could have won, they'd have been here," Romney said.

"What you're seeing is that they looked at the field and said, 'Gosh, Mitt Romney's message and his resources and his ground team is so strong, we can't compete there.'"

And Romney brushed aside attacks on his policy position changes, such as what critics say was his conversion to an anti-abortion rights stance to win conservative support.

"I'm pleased that the message is connecting, that all of the barbs that get thrown by my competitors are being dismissed," he said.

Huckabee and Brownback, whose combined vote exceeded Romney's, said the former Massachusetts governor had peaked with no room for improvement while they still had plenty of chances to increase their support.

For the biggest losers in the straw poll, the results could mean a quick campaign exit. Former Wisconsin Gov. Tommy Thompson, who said he needed to finish in the top two to go on, came in sixth.