Finally. After two long, unendurable weeks with no caucuses or primaries–how did I even pass the time?–the day has come. As we speak/type/read, the voters of Texas, Ohio, Rhode Island and Vermont are already heading to the polls to cast their votes for Hillary Clinton, Barack Obama, John McCain, Mike Huckabee or Ron Paul (yes, he’s still kicking). Huzzah.
On the Republican side of the aisle, the stakes aren’t particularly high. If McCain wins 172 of the day’s 256 delegates, he’ll clinch the nomination; if not, he may have to wait a week (for Mississippi) or a month (for Pennsylvania). Either way, he’s the nominee. Sorry, Huck.
As for the Democrats… well, you’ve probably heard that there’s a little something riding on today’s results. With wins in Texas and Ohio, Obama could deal Clinton a death blow. On the other hand, a Clinton sweep would kick start (yet another) Comeback Gal narrative and extend the contest at least through the Keystone State on April 22–if not the Denver convention in late August. A split decision? Who knows.
According to the Stumper tradition, I’ll be blogging today on “what’s next” for Clinton and Obama. While you wait, check out the latest Texas and Ohio trend lines from RealClearPolitics. It’s clear that even after 11 straight wins, Obama isn’t the only one with momentum.
Texas (Clinton in purple; Obama in green):
