Republican presidential contender Rick Santorum says he’s vote for Donald Trump if the real estate mogul wins the GOP nomination.
“I'd vote for him over Hillary Clinton,” Santorum said on Morning Joe on August 7, the morning after the first official debate.
Santorum, who ran for president in 2012, was stuck in the earlier debate on Thursday due to low polling numbers.
Trump debated in the main debate with nine others, including Jeb Bush and Chris Christie.
“If you look at how most social conservatives are going to vote, they are going to vote based on someone that they do trust,” Santorum added.
“This is a primary, you don’t have to take someone you have to take a risk on,” he said. “I'd vote for me in a primary.”
Trump angered some Republicans by refusing to rule out an independent bid should he not get the GOP nomination, even if it would cost Republicans the election.
Trump leads the field by a significant margin in the latest polls, getting 20 percent of Republican and Republican-leaning voters in the latest Quinnipiac University poll released last week.
Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker came in second at 13 percent and former Florida Gov. Bush came in third at 10 percent.
Meanwhile, the Republican debate came in with early overnight ratings as the most-watched primary debate in history, reported CNN.
Nielsen says that 16 percent of U.S. homes with TV sets tuned in, which doesn’t include people streaming the debate online.
The next debates are set for September 16 on CNN and October 28 on CNBC.
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