According to Intrade.com, Mitt Romney currently has a 70% chance of becoming the Republican Presidential nominee in 2012.
Mitt Romney has been slow and steady so far, while other candidates for the Republican nomination have surged and then faded.
Herman Cain seemed to be a serious contender for the nomination just a few weeks ago, but he has faded in recent days.
Rick Perry was seemingly the "golden boy" when he announced his intentions to run for the nomination, but he has spectacularly crashed over the past few months. This performance earlier tonight will very likely seal the deal for Perry - he won't recover from this:
Other candidates such as Newt Gingrich, Ron Paul and Michele Bachmann are far behind Romney and don't have much hope of securing the nomination, barring some sort of an epic meltdown from Romney (which seems unlikely).
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According to a Gallup.com report released earlier today, 45% of Republicans currently believe that Mitt Romney will win the nomination. The next closest candidate? Herman Cain (13%).
Here is the full breakdown:
Mitt Romney, 45%
Herman Cain, 13%
Rick Perry, 9%
Newt Gingrich, 4%
Ron Paul, 3%
Michele Bachmann, 3%
Jon Huntsman, 1%
Rick Santorum, 1%
Other, 1%
None/Any/No Opinion, 21%
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Anything could happen over the next couple of months, but this is definitely Romney's nomination to lose at this point.
In case you were wondering, in the most recent poll from RasmussenReports.com, President Obama currently holds a slim 42-41% lead over Mitt Romney in a hypothetical presidential matchup.
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According to Intrade.com, Mitt Romney currently has a 70% chance of becoming the Republican Presidential nominee in 2012. 
