Mitt Romney won the Nevada Republican caucuses Saturday, scoring dramatic back-to-back victories in the race for the nomination.

With 86 percent of caucus sites reporting, Romney had 53 percent in the state, followed by John McCain with 13 percent, Ron Paul with 13 percent, Mike Huckabee with 8 percent, Fred Thompson with 8 percent, Rudy Giuliani with 2 percent and Duncan Hunter with 2 percent.

It was not immediately clear what impact the Nevada win would have on Romney's campaign.

The former Massachusetts governor was one of the few Republicans with any campaign presence in the state, as his top competitors stayed in South Carolina ahead of its influential first-in-the-South primary the same day. Paul was airing television ads in Nevada, and Romney left South Carolina to make a final push in the state Thursday.

But in a race with no clear frontrunner, Romney has defended his against-the-grain strategy, saying he could stomach a loss in South Carolina. He's cast his campaign as a quest for convention delegates and was looking to reinforce that tally in Nevada, which offers more delegates than South Carolina.

Romney won the Michigan primary Tuesday, and also claimed victory in the Wyoming caucuses. He headed to Florida later Saturday to campaign ahead of its Jan. 29 primary.

Hearing about his victory for the first time on the plane to Florida Romney said, "I'm not looking just to get a couple high-profile victories; I want to get delegates and I want to win this nomination."

Romney stressed his economic plans in Nevada, as he did in Michigan. A day after President Bush called for a stimulus package worth up to $150 billion, Romney issued a plan of his own calling for a reduction in the lowest income tax bracket, tax cuts for working seniors and tax-free savings for the middle class.

The campaign released a statement Saturday claiming the Nevada win helps solidify his status as a change candidate.

"Today, the people of Nevada voted for change in Washington. For far too long, our leaders have promised to take the action necessary to build a stronger America, and still the people of Nevada and all across this country are waiting. Whether it is reforming health care, making America energy independent or securing the border, the American people have been promised much and are now ready for change," he said.

Though earlier polls showed Romney had only a moderate lead going into Nevada, exit polls showed Mormons and economy-minded voters contributed to Romney's landslide.

Romney is a Mormon, and about one-quarter of Nevada voters share his faith. Exit polls showed nearly all Mormons voted for Romney in Saturday's caucuses.

"That's a clue to one of his secrets in winning this," FOX News contributor Michael Barone said.

Campaigning in Columbia, S.C., Thompson teased Romney when he heard the news of his Nevada victory.

"Imagine that! Glad he could pull one out," Thompson said.

Polls in South Carolina don't close until 7 p.m. The race there is shaping up to be a battle between Huckabee, who won the Iowa caucuses, and McCain, who won the New Hampshire primary.

A recent FOX News poll showed McCain holding a healthy lead in South Carolina. He took 27 percent in the poll, followed by Huckabee at 20 percent, Romney at 15 percent and Thompson at 11 percent.

But the poll showed the race could go either way, since one in five likely voters in South Carolina were undecided going into the primary.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.