After Super Tuesday, splits in the race for the GOP presidential nomination remain. Although Mitt Romney won in Ohio, it was neck and neck with Rick Santorum until the end.

The results are in. Former Massachusetts Governor Mitt Romney edged a narrow victory in Ohio, the most hotly contested state, and Massachusetts, Virginia, Vermont, Idaho and Alaska. Elsewhere, Rick Santorum won Oklahoma and Tennessee and Newt Gingrich won his home state of Georgia. But what do these results mean for the rest of the GOP campaign? And do they tell us anything about how the country will vote in November?

After Super Tuesday, the GOP contest is no longer all over the map. The candidates' speeches last night reflected their current status: Romney as the tentative frontrunner, Santorum the conservative with a headwind, Gingrich a factor but probably not a player, and Ron Paul as the embodiment of voter anger.

Last night's Super Tuesday primary vote focused on just four presidential candidates from the Republican party. However, just months ago the field was significantly larger, with nine candidates. After Herman Cain, Michelle Bachmann, Rick Perry and John Huntsman dropped out of the race, they faded from the campaign trail. When GOP candidate Governor Tim Pawlenty took a disappointing third place finish in the Ames Straw Poll in August, however, he made a different decision by endorsing Mitt Romney for President less than a month later and taking a leadership position with the former Massachusetts governor’s campaign.

Of all the states up for grabs on Super Tuesday, Ohio was the biggest prize. Ohio has long been considered a bellwether in presidential politics. Living in a rust belt state, Ohioans are more concerned about their economic future than ever before, but social issues like abortion and marriage are also near and dear to the Ohio conservatives who showed up at the polls yesterday. So what decided Ohio Republican votes on Super Tuesday this year? What do the Ohio results forecast for the general election? 

In Ohio, Super Tuesday not only meant a Republican presidential primary but a race that pitted eight-term Congressman Dennis Kucinich against 15-term Congresswoman Marcy Kaptur. After the votes were tallied, Kucinich came up short. Kaptur now faces the GOP primary winner, Samuel Wurzelbacher, the man who became known as "Joe the Plumber" during the 2008 Presidential race.

Super Tuesday results aren't just about state-by-state winners and losers -- or about securing delegates. They're also a crucial barometer of what matters to voters and why. Detailed exit polls results from contests around the country paint a complex picture about what issues voters of different demographics are most passionate about and who they believe will be represent their interests.  

By the numbers, Georgia is the biggest prize this Super Tuesday with 76 delegates. Perhaps most telling will be Newt Gingrich’s performance in his home state: if he wants to stay competitive in the race for the Republican presidential nomination, he’s going to need a decisive victory in the Peach State. Ohio, with 66 delegates of its own, may be the biggest psychological prize. Many have declared this the race to watch, as no Republican nominee has ever become president without winning the swing state in the general election.

The dialogue of the 2012 election has been defined in a large part through social media, and Super Tuesday was no different. Republican presidential candidates, journalists, and voters from across the country tweeted yesterday about their opinions of the GOP primary race.  

A Fox Latino poll of likely voters released earlier this week showed 70 percent supporting President Obama and just 14 percent supporting Governor Mitt Romney. The same poll also seems to indicate that the Republican party is having trouble winning new Latino voters -- and keeping Latino voters who have favored the GOP in the past. Poll numbers indicated that four of five Latinos who voted for Obama in 2008 planned vote for him again later this year. Meanwhile, among Latinos who voted for Republican Arizona Senator John McCain four years ago only 40 percent now say they support Obama.

Here's a question you may not have asked yourself: why does the Republican party hold primaries and caucuses at all? Is there a better system than the long, drawn out process of staggered elections which push and pull the political momentum towards different candidates at different points in the cycle? Wouldn't it be easier to have all of the states elect their nominee at once? Or is there another way entirely to choose our political leaders?