The four remaining US Republican presidential contenders are to hold a last-ditch debate as the South Carolina primary race enters its final stretch.
Mitt Romney, Newt Gingrich, Ron Paul and Rick Santorum debate in Charleston at the end of a dramatic day.
As Mr Gingrich gained on Mr Romney in the polls, an ex-wife revealed in an interview he wanted an "open marriage".
Meanwhile, Rick Perry pulled out of the race and Iowa said a vote mix-up meant Mr Romney had not won its caucuses.
Mr Romney, a former Massachusetts governor, is the front-runner in the state-by-state race for the Republican Party's nomination to challenge Democratic President Barack Obama for the White House this November.
He is ahead of Mr Gingrich a former speaker of the House of Representatives, and won the New Hampshire primary earlier this month.
On Thursday former Pennsylvania Senator Rick Santorum - courting the social conservative vote in the Palmetto State - was certified to have won more votes than Mr Romney in Iowa.
Texas Congressman Ron Paul, the fourth remaining candidate, is battling Mr Santorum for third position, according to the poll.
The primary vote will be held on Saturday.
Ex-wife attacks
In a state famous for its bare-knuckle electoral politics, three of the four contenders saw their fortunes fluctuate wildly on Thursday.
Rick Perry's star faded long ago. Recent opinion polls in South Carolina put him somewhere between 2% and 5%. He can't bequeath those votes, only urge supporters to vote for Mr Gingrich. But it is likely almost all of his would-be supporters will vote for a candidate who is not Mitt Romney. The narrowing of the field concentrates minds and makes it slightly easier for conservatives to come together behind an alternative.
The interview with Newt Gingrich's ex-wife far outweighs this bit of good news for the former Speaker. There is no doubt hearing more details of his infidelities will disturb Christian conservatives who are big in this state. But central to their faith is the ideal of forgiveness and redemption. They may give Mr Gingrich a chance despite their doubts.
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In a bitter South Carolina campaign Mr Romney has come under increasing pressure to disclose his tax returns as his business success and personal fortune remains a divisive campaign issue.
Mr Romney's Mormon faith and political record as governor of the liberal state of Massachusetts is also viewed with suspicion by some conservative Republicans.
Mr Gingrich was set to take the debate stage in Charleston hours before ABC News aired the full details of an interview with his second wife, Marianne.
Despite poll numbers showing him gaining on Mr Romney, the long-time front-runner, his pitch to South Carolina's largely conservative and Christian electorate looked to be under threat by her testimony.
In an excerpt of her remarks on ABC News' Nightline programme, the former Mrs Gingrich says her ex-husband wanted her to share him with Callista Bisek, the woman who would become his third wife.
"He was asking to have an open marriage and I refused," she said.
She claims he conducted the extramarital affair in the bedroom of their Washington apartment while she was away, and would call her at night to say he loved her, while sharing the bed with his then lover.
Mr Gingrich defended himself on the campaign trail in that state on Thursday, saying: "I have been very open about the mistakes I've made. I am 68 years old. I am a grandfather."
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