The three remaining Republican presidential candidates will be tested once again Saturday at the South Carolina GOP primary.

Many local political experts said this might be one of the most critical points in the campaign for Texas Gov. George W. Bush, Arizona Sen. John McCain and ambassador Alan Keyes.

“South Carolina will probably be the most crucial state thus far because the winner will probably emerge as the front-runner the rest of the way,” said Charles Johnson, vice-chairman of the ISU College Republicans. “It will be a very defining state for the rest of the race for the nomination.”

Steffen Schmidt, professor of political science, said South Carolina’s primary will carry more weight this year than it has in the past.

“They are playing a huge, important role this year, which they don’t normally do,” he said. “[South Carolina] is suddenly really important because it’s the place where Bush said he would begin his victory.”

Regardless of who is the final victor, many activists predict a tight race.

“I think it’s going to be really close,” said Johnson, sophomore in political science. “McCain has been building speed a lot, but Bush has always been strong.”

Within the last week, McCain has picked up endorsements from former presidential hopeful Gary Bauer and Bill Jones, the California secretary of state.

Chairman of Students for Bush Garrett Toay said the race is just too close to call.

“I have no idea anymore. [The polls] say it’s a dead heat right now.” said Toay, senior in agricultural business. “Bush has his core of supporters, and I think that it really depends on their turnout.”

A recent poll commissioned by USA Today and CNN shows Bush with only a slight lead, holding 49 percent of the support compared to McCain’s 42 percent. Keyes had only 5 percent of the vote in the poll.

Schmidt said unless Bush wins by a substantial margin on Saturday, McCain still will be considered the winner.

“McCain was never expected to do this well,” he said. “[Bush] is no longer seen as the guy with all of the momentum. He’s spent way too much money to just stay barely alive.”

Steve Skutnik, GOP activist, said a win for Bush would be merely another step in the long campaign, but a win for McCain would be a major triumph.

“With Bush, he is running on his winability factor,” said Skutnik, sophomore in physics. “If Bush wins it, though, it’s not really a big thing since he is expected to win it.”