McCain emerges as Republican front-runner

By Steve Holland - Analysis

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Republican John McCain emerged on Tuesday as the front-runner for his party's presidential nomination with a victory in Florida, six months after he was resurrected from the political scrap heap.

McCain, who at 71 would be the oldest person elected to a first presidential term, scored a narrow victory over rival Mitt Romney in Florida despite being outspent on advertising by an estimated three-to-one margin.

"Our victory might not have reached landslide proportions, but it was sweet nonetheless," McCain told a victory rally in Miami.

With Republicans increasingly rallying around McCain as the most electable candidate in the party's field, the Arizona senator goes into the campaign for the 21 states holding Republican contests on "Super Tuesday" on February 5 with the wind at his back.

That surge would be boosted even more with an expected endorsement by former New York Mayor Rudy Giuliani, who finished a distant third in Florida after staking his candidacy on the state.

McCain already is in a strong position in many of the Super Tuesday states like delegate-rich California, New York and New Jersey.

"McCain now has the momentum to sweep Super Tuesday," said Republican strategist Scott Reed. "He's proven to doubters that he can put together a right-of-center winning coalition and he's now the front-runner for the Republican nomination."

'I INTEND TO WIN IT'