Republican White House hopeful Mitt Romney romped to victory in the Nevada caucuses, cementing his position as frontrunner to take on President Barack Obama in November.

Republican White House hopeful Mitt Romney romped to victory in the Nevada caucuses, cementing his position as frontrunner to take on President Barack Obama in November.

But his main rival, former House speaker Newt Gingrich, who came in second place late Saturday, vowed to fight all the way to August for his party's nomination, which he insists he can still win.

The results come as the candidates prepare for three more state polls this week, with experts predicting that Romney and Gingrich will likely duel right up to the party's summer convention in Florida.

With 71 percent of Nevada votes counted, Romney had 48 percent of the vote -- a decisive lead, although below his 50 percent in 2008 -- followed by 23 percent for Gingrich.

In his speech, Romney failed to mention a single one of his Republican rivals, training his attacks solely on Obama.

"This president's misguided policies made these tough times last longer," he said. "America needs a president who can fix the economy because he understands the economy, and I do, and I will."

For his part, Gingrich vowed to fight on, saying that he hopes to draw equal with frontrunner Romney in delegate numbers by April.

The Republican candidates are fighting to win the most of the 1,144 delegates in Tampa. So far Romney has 95, Gingrich 30, Paul 13 and Santorum 10.