Senators Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton once again face-off in crucial primaries as voters in Indiana and North Carolina go to the polls Tuesday in the largest remaining primary in the Democratic presidential nomination. Senator Obama is looking to shore up his position as the front-runner, while Senator Clinton is seeking keep her candidacy competitive in a historic race that is likely to continue into June and maybe to the Democratic National Convention in August.
Senator Obama began the day by dropping in on the Four Seasons Family Restaurant in Greenwood, Indiana, a suburb of Indianapolis. He walked around shaking hands, then sat at the counter and had an omelet, chatting with patrons on either side. He was flying later to North Carolina to await election results in Raleigh after visiting a polling place at Hinkle Field House on the campus of Butler University in Indianapolis, the site of part of the filming of the basketball movie “Hoosiers.” Senator Obama chatted with voters and said he had hoped to shoot a few baskets while there, but the nets were up because of an upcoming commencement.
In Indiana many voters already were in line when polls opened at 6 a.m. Tuesday. Even before the opening of polls at 6:30 a.m. in North Carolina, there were signs of record turnout. Nearly half a million people had already cast early and absentee ballots as of Monday — more than half the total number of voters who cast a ballot during the 2004 primary.
Senator Clinton in her final campaign hours pressed her proposal for a federal gas tax holiday that Senator Obama has dismissed as a gimmick, one of the few issues where the two Democrats clearly disagree. "It's a stunt," the Illinois senator said in Evansville. "It's what Washington does." Senator Obama's stance was backed up by 230 economists who released a letter Monday opposing the temporary tax break, which would take 18.4 cents off the price of a gallon if consumers got the full savings at the pump. The signers included four Nobel Prize winners and economic advisers to presidents of both parties.
The rivals raced through both states in a frenetic dawn-to-midnight campaign swing Monday. Senator Obama capped Monday day with a rain-soaked, get-out-the-vote rally in Indianapolis featuring Motown legend Stevie Wonder, followed by a visit to a factory for the midnight shift change.
With 187 delegates at stake in the two states, nearly half the pledged delegates left with eight primaries to go before voting ends in a month, North Carolina and Indiana cannot mathematically settle the nomination. A candidate needs 2,025 delegates to win, and Senator Obama had 1,745.5 to 1,608 Monday. And no matter what happens today the margin probably won’t change much unless one of the candidates gets a lopsided victory, which is highly unlikely as opinion polls basically pointed to another draw in the biggest single day of voting left.
The key to the nomination is held by superdelegates. The Clinton camp admits she cannot overtake the Illinois senator in the count of pledged delegates who will formally anoint the nominee at the Democratic convention in August. So she is pinning her hopes on persuading nearly 800 superdelegates, who look set to have the deciding vote. About 220 are still undecided. And despite his loss in the Pennsylvania primary two weeks ago, Senator Obama has continued to nibble away at Senator Clinton's lead in superdelegates. He picked up two from Maryland on Monday, leaving him trailing Clinton 269-255. Senator Clinton's main hope is to persuade most of the still-neutral superdelegates to disregard his lead in the delegate chase and support her instead. Analysts say Senator Clinton needs to take Indiana to at least halt a flow of Democratic superdelegates to Obama and stay in the race.
After today there will be five states and one territory yet to hold Democratic presidential contests. They are: West Virginia primary on May 13, (28 delegates); Kentucky primary on May 20, (51 delegates); Oregon primary on May 20 (52 Democratic delegates); Puerto Rico primary on June 1 (55 delegates); Montana primary on June 3 (16 Democratic delegates); South Dakota primary on June 3 (15 Democratic delegates). Hillary Clinton will win West Virginia and Kentucky easily (both land of the Archie Bunker types) and Puerto Rico. Barack Obama will win Oregon, Montana and South Dakota.
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