Former Florida governor Jeb Bush endorses Romney

Jeb Bush, the former governor of Florida, announced his endorsement of Republican presidential candidate hopeful Mitt Romney yesterday. This follows Romney's win in the Illinois primary on Tuesday, where he beat Rick Santorum by 12 percentage points.

In a statement, Bush argued that "now is the time for Republicans to unite behind Governor Romney and take our message of fiscal conservatism and job creation to all voters this fall". He also stated that he believed Romney to be "a leader who understands the economy, recognises more government regulation is not the answer, believes in entrepreneurial capitalism and works to ensure that all Americans have the opportunity to succeed".

Romney welcomed the endorsement and stated that it was a "key moment" in his campaign for the presidential candidacy: "Jeb Bush is synonymous with good government and with conservative policies that yield results. He has long demonstrated an outstanding ability to bring people together. I therefore take tremendous pride in having earned his endorsement."

Fundraising figures have been released for February: Romney raised $12.5 million during the month, and spent $12.3 million on advertising. In comparison, Santorum raised $2.5 million in February. The next primary will take place in Louisiana on Saturday, followed by primaries on April 3 in Wisconsin, Maryland and the District of Columbia. In Wisconsin, Romney is reported to be spending $2 million on television adverts compared to Santorum's $50,000.