Less than 48 hours after John McCain secured a commanding lead in the Republican race for the nomination, the Arizona senator has turned to his next big challenge - the bid to reunite his fractured party.
Mr McCain's appearance at the annual conference of the Conservative Political Action Committee - an event he has snubbed in the past - will be a key test of his ability to heal rifts within the party as its bruising nomination race nears its conclusion.
Mr McCain is expected to trumpet his conservative credentials on issues ranging from abortion to gun control while also stressing the importance of appealing to independents and "enlightened Democrats".
The senator is viewed with suspicion by many conservatives because of his willingness to forge compromise with Democrats on issues such as immigration, climate change and campaign finance reform.
But conservatives have also failed to unify around any of Mr McCain's presidential rivals, allowing him to surge towards the nomination with strong support from independents and Republican moderates.
Mr McCain's opponents have warned that his nomination would send the Republicans into November's election demoralised and divided in a year when the party faces an uphill struggle to keep hold of the White House.
But in his Super Tuesday victory rally in Phoenix, the senator insisted he could restore party unity and beat either Hillary Clinton or Barack Obama, the rival Democratic candidates.
Several prominent conservative opinion-leaders launched an aggressive push to rally support behind Mr Romney in the days leading up to Super Tuesday. But their efforts were undermined by Mr Huckabee, the former Arkansas governor, whose strong performance in the US south prevented Mr Romney emerging as a credible conservative standard-bearer.
James Dobson, founder of Focus on the Family, one of the most influential Christian conservative groups, became the latest to voice opposition to Mr McCain on Tuesday.
"I am convinced senator McCain is not a conservative and, in fact, has gone out of his way to stick his thumb in the eyes of those who are," he said.