GOP primaries

The five states penalized for shifting their presidential primaries earlier than RNC rules permit will retain those penalties.

Republican voters in central Florida will choose Tuesday between veteran Rep. John Mica and freshman Rep. Sandy Adams.

Sarah Steelman's loss in Missouri marks the end of Palin's endorsement winning streak, but doesn't mean Palin’s lost her touch.

Florida Rep. Sandy Adams (R) labeled House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee Chairman John Mica's criticism of Amtrak for its concession expenses an "election-year stunt."

Mica has harshly criticized Amtrak, which is the national passenger rail service, for a report that the agency lost $833 million in the last 10 years on serving food and beverages onboard its trains. The two Florida lawmakers are in a heated primary battle after redistricting in the state.

Adams' campaign said Wednesday that Mica's proposal to privatize food and beverage service would still require the federal government to subsidize Amtrak's concession losses.

"For proof, look no further than the text of his original highway bill, H.R. 7," Adams's campaign said in an email to its supporters.

An influential Tea Party group on Monday endorsed Rep. Sandy Adams (R-Fla.) in her member-versus-member primary against fellow Republican Rep. John Mica (Fla.).

Tea Party Express said Adams was a better choice for central Florida lawmakers than Mica, the long-term House Transportation Committee chairman.

"The Tea Party is not just about sending new conservatives to Washington, we also want to defend those that have been principled conservative voices," Tea Party Express Chairwoman Amy Kremer said in a statement released by Adams's campaign. "Rep. Sandy Adams was elected in 2010 on a wave of Tea Party support, and I am proud to be able to stand here today and reaffirm our support."

Rep. Sandy Adams (R-Fla.) is portraying House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee Chairman John Mica (R-Fla.) as a "cheerleader" for President Obama in a new campaign ad in the final days of their contentious member-versus-member primary.

The 30-second commercial shows Obama thanking Mica for his work on the $105 billion transportation bill taken from a signing ceremony at the White House last month.

Obama says Mica's "leadership made this bill a reality," and the ad then links the lawmaker to provisions in the transportation bill that allow toll lanes to be constructed on central Florida's Interstate 4.

Romney’s campaign unveiled a new ad that embraced a more positive tone than his recent attacks on Obama's economic record. 

The Tea Party movement is on the cusp of a major Senate victory in Texas, where former state Solicitor General Ted Cruz (R) appears to have the upper hand against Lt. Gov. David Dewhurst (R) heading into Tuesday’s runoff election.

Former Missouri state Treasurer Sarah Steelman (R) has released an ad featuring former Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin (R) touting her as "economist who defends our tax dollars like a mama grizzly defends her cubs."

With big-dollar support from national groups and prominent conservatives including Palin and Sen. DeMint, Ted Cruz may have pulled ahead.