LAS VEGAS — Hoping to extend his winning streak by finishing first in Nevada's GOP presidential caucus today, Mitt Romney spent Friday campaigning across the state before hitting the airwaves as a guest of Jay Leno on "The Tonight Show."

Romney answered an early wake-up call and flew first to Elko and then to Reno to meet with supporters and local media on the eve of the caucus vote before taking a page out of the Mike Huckabee playbook and jetting off to Burbank, Calif., where the NBC late-night show was taped late Friday afternoon.

He is trying to duplicate in Nevada his victory in Michigan's primary last Tuesday, even though today's Republican primary in South Carolina is getting more attention — and more candidates. None of Romney's GOP rivals is in the Silver State, choosing instead to do battle in the first Southern state to vote in the 2008 race.

Romney told reporters in Reno that his spending time in Nevada could pay off for the party if he becomes the Republican nominee. Nevada will be a battleground state come November, and Democratic presidential candidates are campaigning hard to win their caucus here with that in mind.

"I want to win in the general election," Romney said. "I think it's going to be real hard to win the presidency if, by not showing up in Nevada (for the caucus), you communicate that Nevada doesn't matter to you as much as it does to the other guys."

He said he felt the same way about Wyoming's Jan. 5 party convention, where his only other first-place finish drew little notice. Even though Romney lost both Iowa and New Hampshire, he currently has more delegates than any other Republican, and a win in Nevada could boost his lead even more since Nevada actually has more delegates up for grabs than does South Carolina.

Romney said during his Reno press conference that illegal immigration and the economy are two top issues with Nevadans. His comments came following a rally held in an airport hotel ballroom that drew several hundred enthusiastic supporters, including one who shouted out, "illegal immigration" as Romney was running through his "To Do" list if he's elected president.

Romney said he's heard "a great deal" about illegal immigration while campaigning in Nevada, calling the issue "among the most straightforward to deal with."

Romney's solutions for stemming illegal immigration into the United States include finishing the fence being constructed along the Mexican border, hiring more border agents and punishing government entities that don't comply with existing laws by withholding federal funds.

He also made a point to stress the need to keep the economy strong, a pitch that played well in Michigan because of the troubled auto industry in that state.