2008 Woodie Awards
Obama, McCain take lead
Max Edmands
Issue date: 2/18/08 Section: News
On Tuesday, February 5, New York and twenty-four other states held their primaries for this year's presidential election. Because of the large number of primaries all scheduled on the same date, many people called it "Super Tuesday."
Democratic font-runners Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton earned roughly the same number of delegates: Obama won 847 and Clinton won 834. In the Republican race, John McCain pulled ahead of his competition, winning 511 delegates over Mitt Romney's 176, Mike Huckabee's 147, and Ron Paul's 10.
Because the race is so close, the Democratic race is being viewed with much consternation. Many Democrats and party officials are worried that the Democratic nominee could be decided not by voters, but by a group of 795 party insiders known as "super delegates." In fact, on Valentines Day, political interest group MoveOn.org put out a petition encouraging super delegates to "hold off on making a decision until after voters have made theirs." Some party insiders, such as former Vice President Al Gore, are remaining neutral in this primary because of their extreme prominence and influence in the party's nomination process.
Meanwhile, on the Republican side, McCain has become the front-running candidate. To most, it seems unlikely that any other candidate will be able to gain enough delegates to win the primary. Mitt Romney dropped out of the race, leaving McCain with 808 delegates total, compared to Mike Huckabee's 198 delegates. As a result, members of both parties are already scrutinizing McCain very closely, as though he were already selected as the Republican candidate.
Democratic font-runners Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton earned roughly the same number of delegates: Obama won 847 and Clinton won 834. In the Republican race, John McCain pulled ahead of his competition, winning 511 delegates over Mitt Romney's 176, Mike Huckabee's 147, and Ron Paul's 10.
Because the race is so close, the Democratic race is being viewed with much consternation. Many Democrats and party officials are worried that the Democratic nominee could be decided not by voters, but by a group of 795 party insiders known as "super delegates." In fact, on Valentines Day, political interest group MoveOn.org put out a petition encouraging super delegates to "hold off on making a decision until after voters have made theirs." Some party insiders, such as former Vice President Al Gore, are remaining neutral in this primary because of their extreme prominence and influence in the party's nomination process.
Meanwhile, on the Republican side, McCain has become the front-running candidate. To most, it seems unlikely that any other candidate will be able to gain enough delegates to win the primary. Mitt Romney dropped out of the race, leaving McCain with 808 delegates total, compared to Mike Huckabee's 198 delegates. As a result, members of both parties are already scrutinizing McCain very closely, as though he were already selected as the Republican candidate.
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