The deadline has come and gone for Republican Senate candidate Rep. Todd Akin to take his name off the Missouri ballot and let someone else try for the seat as he faces a tide of criticism from high-ranking Republicans -- including Mitt Romney -- for his comments on "legitimate rape."
Recent polls showed incumbent Sen. Claire McCaskill lagging double digits behind Akin before he made his remarks about rape in an interview with FOX 9's sister station in ST. Louis. Now, she's within a point of her Republican challenger.
Pressure is starting to pile on Akin to step down. The Republican party pulled millions of dollars from his campaign, and Karl Rove's SuperPAC shut down its ad plans in the state. Despite this, Akin has stood defiant, saying calls for him to step down are an "overreaction."
Instead, Akin has released a new apology ad and did some new interviews on Tuesday while rejecting all requests to reconsider remaining in the race.
However, aides to the congressman told the Associated Press that leaders in the Republican Party have had a hard time reaching Akin since he made the comments.
On Tuesday, Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney announced he agrees that Akin should get out of the race since it could jeopardize the GOP's chances of retaking the Senate -- and his opponent knows it.
If history is any indicator of what will happen, Republican candidate Fay Boozman said nearly the same thing in 1998. He said his unsuccessful Senate campaign in Arkansas never recovered from it.
The American Congress of Obstetricians and Gynecologists say Akins suggestions about rape and pregnancy contradict basic biological truths.
The official Republican platform on abortion calls for a constitutional amendment banning abortion without specific exceptions for rape or incest. Romney had gone back and forth on abortion issues throughout the years. Now, he says he's 100 percent behind the exception for rape.
