Presidential Primary: Now It Gets Interesting

I never would have imagined a few months ago that I’d be staying up late to watch Presidential primary election results but that’s exactly what I did last night in what is turning out to be a fascinating race for the White House. Seemingly dead and buried in the fall John McCain clinched the Republican nomination but the big story was Hilary Clinton’s primary wins in Ohio, Texas & Rhode Island in what is turning out to be a riveting Democratic race between the former First Lady and Barack Obama.

McCain surpassed the delegates needed to win the GOP nomination as his last remaining major rival Mike Huckabee conceded defeat and then promised to help the 71-year old Arizona senator capture the presidency. McCain showed amazing resiliency during the primary as he was pretty much counted out and considered a non-factor. However he pulled things together and then starting in New Hampshire just eight weeks ago began piling up wins and delegates and dispatched contenders like Rudy Guiliani and Mitt Romney. With the nomination secure McCain can think ahead to November and today he’ll have lunch at the White House and get the endorsement of President Bush.

However the battle for the Democratic nomination looks like it will go well into the spring and maybe even longer. It was pretty much assumed going into last night that Clinton had to win both Ohio & Texas which were considered toss-up states. She took both along with Rhode Island while Obama, who had claimed the last 11 primaries, had to settle for a victory in Vermont. He says the delegate count is not all that much different then when Tuesday started but the truth is Clinton has halted his momentum and has given her own effort a major shot in the arm. There are still ten state primaries remaining with the big prize being Pennsylvania on April 22nd where Clinton is the favorite. What’s more she has shown the ability to win all the big states which many Democrats believe will be a necessity come November. Don’t be surprised if the Clinton-Obama fight heads to the convention this summer while McCain sits back and saves his money and energy.