共和党参选人超级星期二决战

In U.S. presidential politics, the four remaining Republican contenders are headed for a major showdown Tuesday when 10 states hold primary or caucus votes on the same day, with as many as 437 delegates at stake to the Republican nominating convention in August. The so-called Super Tuesday slate of contests will be a crucial test for the top two Republican candidates, former Massachusetts Governor Mitt Romney and former Pennsylvania Senator Rick Santorum.

在美国的总统竞选活动中，共和党内剩下的4位总统参选人将于下周二展开决战，10个州的共和党人将在同一天的初选或党团会议中进行投票。这次所谓的超级星期二竞选对于共和党内两名领先的参选人来讲是至关重要的，这两位参选人分别是前麻萨诸塞州州长罗姆尼和来自宾夕法尼亚州的前联邦参议员桑托勒姆。

Super Tuesday is the single biggest primary day of the year and the outcome will likely have a big impact on the Republican race.

超级星期二是今年规模最大的一个初选日。它的结果可能将对共和党的竞选产生重大影响。

Former Massachusetts Governor Mitt Romney is hoping to build on the momentum from his victories in Arizona and Michigan and solidify his status as the clear frontrunner for the Republican Party nomination.

前麻萨诸塞州州长罗姆尼希望凭借他在亚利桑那州和密西根州的胜利势头，巩固他争取共和党总统候选人提名的领先地位。

“And the reason I am running in this race is to restore America’s promise to make sure that every person in this room knows the future is bright, we will be prosperous; we will be free, and this will remain the greatest nation on earth," he said.

罗姆尼说：“我参加竞选的原因是，要恢复美国的保证，确保所有美国人都知道前途是光明的，我们将要兴旺发达，我们将是自由的，我们仍将是世界上最伟大的国家。”

Romney expects to do well in his home state of Massachusetts on Tuesday, plus Vermont and Virginia, where only he and Texas Congressman Ron Paul qualified for the ballot.

预料，罗姆尼星期二将在他自己的麻萨诸塞州取得佳绩。另外，他在佛蒙特州和维吉尼亚州也将有良好的成绩，在维吉尼亚，只有他和德克萨斯众议员罗恩.保罗有资格参加竞选。

Romney faces a challenge in several other states on Tuesday from former Pennsylvania Senator Rick Santorum.

星期二，罗姆尼在其他几个州面临前宾夕法尼亚州联邦参议员桑托勒姆的挑战。

Santorum will focus his efforts in Tennessee, Oklahoma and especially Ohio, where the latest polls give him a slight lead over Romney.

桑托勒姆将把精力集中在田纳西州和俄克拉荷马州，尤其是在俄亥俄州，因为最新的民调显示，他在俄亥俄州的支持率略微领先于罗姆尼。

Santorum continues to argue that he, and not Romney, is the true conservative in the Republican race.

桑托勒姆继续争辩说，他，而不是罗姆尼，才是共和党参选人中真正的保守派。

“What is a winning formula is having better ideas. Motivating the base of the Republican Party. Being authentic," he said. "Having the character to go out there and talk about core convictions in America.”

桑托勒姆说：“成功的模式就是要有更好的思想，要能激励共和党的基础成员，要做一个真实的人，要有这样的品质去和人们谈论美国的核心信念。”Former U.S. House Speaker Newt Gingrich hopes for a rebound with a victory in his home state of Georgia, but for the moment Santorum has largely eclipsed him as the leading conservative alternative to Romney.

前美国众议院议长金里奇希望通过在他的家乡佐治亚州取胜来得到反弹，可是目前，桑托勒姆作为替代罗姆尼的一位主要的保守派人士基本上使金里奇黯然失色。

Texas Congressman Ron Paul is hoping for a breakthrough in some of the smaller states voting on Tuesday like Idaho, Alaska and North Dakota.

德州众议员罗恩.保罗希望在星期二投票的一些较小的州取得突破性进展，这些州包括爱达荷、阿拉斯加和北达科他。

Political strategist Matthew Dowd told ABC’s "Good Morning America" that Romney has an opportunity on Tuesday to solidify his status as the leading Republican contender.

政治战略人士马修.多德告诉美国广播公司的早安美国节目，罗姆尼星期二有机会巩固他在共和党参选人当中的领先地位。

“First, he has got to win conservative votes. Second, he has got to put together a winning streak, and the third thing is he has got to be able to unite the party behind a positive message,” he said.

多德说：“他首先必须赢得保守派党员的投票。其次，他必须创造出连胜的势头，第三就是，他必须通过正面的号召来统一全党。”

Both Romney and Santorum are focused on economic issues, especially in the key primary showdown in Ohio.

罗姆尼和桑托勒姆都把焦点集中在经济问题上，尤其要在初选的关键州俄亥俄展开决战。

“Ohio voters are similar to Michigan voters in that they were hit very badly by the economy, and manufacturing jobs are key," said Jennifer Lawless, a political expert at American University in Washington. "If a candidate is not compelling on the economy, that candidate is not going to do well.”

Most analysts expect a split decision on Tuesday with Romney, Santorum and perhaps Gingrich emerging with some victories in the 10 states voting.

大多数分析人士预料，在星期二10个州的选举中，罗姆尼和桑托勒姆可能会平分秋色。另外，金里奇或许也能通过在一些州取胜而崛起。

Romney leads in the delegate count at the moment with more than 160 delegates supporting him, but it takes a total of 1,144 to secure the Republican nomination, meaning the Republican race is likely to go on well after Super Tuesday.

罗姆尼目前在赢得党代会代表方面领先，已有160多名代表支持他。可是，他需要拥有1144名代表的支持才能有把握获得总统候选人提名。这就意味着，在超级星期二之后，共和党内的竞选活动还会继续相当一段时间。