Former presidential candidate Mitt Romney endorsed Senator John McCain around 3 pm CT on February 14th. Romney has asked his 286 delegates to support the fellow Republican in order to speedily unify the party. This puts McCain only 78 delegates short of securing the Republican nomination. Rival Mike Huckabee is still in the Republican race but only has 220 delegates. Huckabee has stated in the past that he intends to continue campaigning until he or Senator McCain secures the nomination.

Romney made his announcement live on CNN from Boston, Massachusetts. Senator McCain was also present. Reporters described the endorsement as awkward, since McCain and Romney were fierce opponents early in the primary, often arguing bitterly during debates. Both candidates disagreed with this depiction. McCain said that while he and Romney disagreed on specifics, they are both members of the same party and share the same goals for the country. Romney noted that they respect each other on a personal level and often laughed and joked at the debates. Romney also mentioned the war in Iraq, saying that McCain should be president because he will do “whatever it takes to be successful in Iraq, on finding and executing Osama bin Laden, and I agree with him on eliminating al Qaeda and terror worldwide.” He asserted that a President Obama or President Clinton would equal surrender in Iraq.  Neither McCain nor Romney mentioned Mike Huckabee during the news conference.

Sources: CNN Election Center and article