Live blog: Romney wins Florida primary

We're live blogging the primary results from Florida, where Mitt Romney has been declared the winner. He gets all 50 of the state's convention delegates.

Scroll down for highlights.

8:41 p.m. ET - 8:43 p.m. ET

Romney finishes his victory speech, really emphasizing his view of American exceptionalism.

Romney says the last three years have been a "detour" and promises a different America. "I want you to remember when our White House reflects the best of who we are, not the worst of what Europe has become," he says. "We still believe in the America that is the land of opportunity and a beacon of freedom."

8:39 p.m. ET - 8:41 p.m. ET

Romney vows to protect religious freedoms, and says he will insist on a "military so powerful no would ever think of challenging it."

"Our plans protect freedom and opportunity," he says. "Together we will build an America where hope is with a paycheck, not a faded word on an old bumper sticker."

8:37 p.m. ET - 8: 39 p.m. ET

"This campaign is about more than replacing a president. It's about saving the soul of America," Romney says.

"President Obama's view of a free economy is to send your money to his friends," he says. "My vision for a free enterprise economy is to return to entrepreneurship and creative genious to the American people."

8:34 p.m.-8: 36 p.m. ET

Now Romney is turning to his stump speech, criticizing Obama's handling of the economy. He also blasts the president's State of the Union, saying Americans don't need a reminder of how we got to this point.

"Leadership is about taking responsibility, not making excuses," he says, before quoting Thomas Paine.

"Mr. President, you were elected to lead. You chose to follow and now it's time for you to get out of the way," Romney says.

8:32 p.m. ET

He acknowledges his rivals as "serious and able competitors," without mentioning their names.

"A competitive primary does not divide us, it prepares us. And we will win," Romney says as a warning to Democrats. "Ours will be a united party with a winning ticket for America."

8:32 p.m. ET

Romney takes the stage and says "thank you" as the crowd cheers "Mitt! Mitt! Mitt!"

8:29 p.m. ET

Ann Romney says: "Thank you, Florida."

She's going through the list of people in Florida who have helped Mitt Romney win the Florida primary, including former congressman Adam Putnam as well as a host of current House members who backed him. They include Reps. Ileana Ros-Lehtinen and Mario Diaz-Balart, stalwarts of the Cuban-American community.

8:28 p.m. ET

The Romney family is making its way to the stage. We'll here from the winner of the Florida primary very soon.

8:27 p.m. ET

Gingrich tweeted a short while ago: "46 states to go!" And he announced a "money bomb" to raise $1 million to defeat "Obamneycare." Does that term sound familiar?

Yes, it was first deployed by former GOP presidential candidate Tim Pawlenty, who used it to describe the similar health care proposals of Obama and Romney. Pawlenty now supports Romney.

8:22 p.m. ET

There's a huge crowd at Romney's victory party in Tampa. The former Massachusetts governor will speak soon.

8:18 p.m. ET:

What does Romney's winning coalition look like in Florida? He won majorities of female and Hispanic voters, as well as those voters who are over 65 years old, according to the exit polls. But he lost to Gingrich among the most conservative voters.

8:06 p.m. ET:

The votes are still being counted, but it looks like Romney's margin of victory will be in double digits. This is significant because Gingrich soundly defeated Romney by 12-points just 10 days ago in South Carolina.

8:01 p.m. ET:

It's official: Romney has won the Florida primary, according to the Associated Press.

8 p.m. ET

All of the polls in Florida are now closed. CNN and Fox News have projected Romney will win the primary.

7:51 p.m. ET:

New data from the second wave of exit polls: About two-thirds or more of Florida voters describe themselves as "conservative" or "very conservative," and "strongly" supportive or "somewhat" supportive of the Tea Party movement. More than one-third of voters are 65 years or older.

7:46 p.m. ET:

Ann Romney tells CNN "we are looking forward to a win tonight." The candidate's wife says it's "unfortunate politics has a negative side to it" but she says she'll continue to emphasize her husband's positive qualities and what he can do to help the economy.

"Mitt can actually do something to turn this economy around," she said, calling her husband a "turnaround guy" who knows how to fix things.

7:09 p.m. ET:

So you think there were too many debates? Florida voters overwhelmingly believe the debates have been either "the most important factor" or "one of several important factors," according to the first wave of exit polls.

7:06 p.m. ET:

Polls have now closed throughout most of the state and in very early returns Romney is leading Gingrich.

Updated 6:32 p.m. ET

Some findings from an early wave of surveys done with Florida voters as they left their polling places shed some light into top concerns.

The economy is clearly on the minds of voters. Half say foreclosures are a "major problem" in their community, and there are statistics to back that up.

USA TODAY's Julie Schmit notes Florida has the 7th highest foreclosure rate, with one of every 49 homes receiving a foreclosure filing in 2011. That compares to 1 out of every 69 homes nationally.

Another interesting note: The early exit polls show defeating President Obama in November is a top concern.

The exit polls are sponsored by the television networks and the Associated Press. Interviews are conducted by Edison Research.

Our original blog post begins here:

The first polls close at 7 p.m. ET, and the last polls close at 8 p.m. ET.

Romney, the former Massachusetts governor making his second bid for the White House, has been aggressive in Florida. He has adapted to his resounding loss to Newt Gingrich in the South Carolina primary 10 days ago.

Gingrich responded by portraying himself as the race's only truth teller. He vowed today the GOP fight would go on through the summer "unless Romney drops out."

Rick Santorum and Ron Paul, meanwhile, took their campaigns to Colorado and Nevada as they searched for the 1,144 delegates needed to win the GOP nomination.

USA TODAY will have full coverage online on our Elections 2012 micro-site. Our colleague Jackie Kucinich is working hard on the ground in Tampa, so follow her on Twitter @JFkucinich. We'll also tweet from @ElectionsUSAT and @USATOnPolitics. And read Susan Page's cover story about what's next in the GOP race in Wednesday's print edition.