And It Goes To the Wire...
It didn't resolve itself on Super Tuesday and one of the biggest and most competitive primary contests in US history goes on, with Hillary taking the advantage of managing to hold on to California despite Obama's late surge. Many TV commentators are saying it came down to Hillary bagging early postal votes before the momentum swung Obama's way.
Both Clinton and Obama claimed victory, seeking to extract momentum from the night's contest for the battles ahead. "The votes are still being counted but there is one thing on this February night that we do not need the final results to know: our time has come," Obama told supporters in Chicago.In truth, there must be disappointment in Obama's camp that he didn't, in the end, manage to capture California; although the speech he gave afterwards - about supporters wanting to give in during an earlier campaign - signalled that he's still in this for the long haul.Obama and Clinton face splitting the night's haul of 1,681 delegates from 22 states because of the closeness of the contest. Early results gave Clinton a slight edge in the delegate race.
She led with 173 delegates to Obama's 149. Overall, that gave Clinton 436 delegates, to 352 for Obama, with 2,025 delegates required to claim the nomination in Denver at this summer's convention.
Likewise, McCain failed to finish off his opponents with one killer blow, although his victory must be considered in the bag.
"I think we must get used to the idea that we are the Republican frontrunner and I do not really mind it one bit," he told a rally in Phoenix.But the person who has played this all like a peach is actually Clinton. A few short weeks ago she was hoping to bag the Democratic nomination tonight, and it's a testament to how skilfully she has played this that most people appear to have forgotten that fact.
Suddenly, the way this is being spun, failure to secure the nomination as planned is nevertheless victory for Clinton.
However, should Obama continue to gain support - as he has all through this campaign - the longer the contest goes on, then this really could go to the wire.
There's still everything to play for here.Obama also improved his share of the white vote, even in southern states such as Georgia where he won 39%. Although Clinton was still in the race last night, Obama remains a favourite as the campaign moves into three back-to-back contests over the next week.
Obama is expected to do well in Louisiana, which holds its caucus on Saturday, because of the large African-American population. Obama is also well placed for the contests in Washington, DC, and neighbouring Maryland and Virginia next week.
While the Clinton campaign has pinned its hopes on March 4, when the powerhouse states of Ohio and Texas, go to the polls, it may prove increasingly difficult to hang in for the long haul.
Depending on Obama's tally once the dust settles on last night's contests, a string of wins from Washington state through Louisiana and Washington, DC, could give him an insurmountable advantage - especially if he is able to rebuild his momentum.
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