A Messy Week in Politics!
We’ve all seen the results of last week in the 2008 Presidential campaign. Mitt Romney started the week winning big in Michigan, where Hillary Clinton won the Democratic nod (as the only serious Democratic contender on the ballot). Then, rushing off to Nevada, Clinton and Barack Obama were running neck-and-neck, with Clinton winning by a substantial majority and Obama claiming to have won more delegates (only 1 more, actually). Meanwhile, John Edwards’ miniscule showings continued in Nevada.
While most of the Republican candidates focused on South Carolina, Mitt Romney went to Nevada and won handily there. Meanwhile, the Republican primaries in South Carolina were plagued by snow and ice (something South Carolinians rarely see) and massive breakdowns of the voting machines used at the polls. Complicating factors, polling places were consolidated with no previous notice to registered voters. Many voters braved the nasty weather, to arrive at their normal voting sites only to find them vacant. With the gusty weather, many of the signs directing voters to alternate polls were blown away or nearly invisible under their icy coatings. Even when voters in the eastern part of the state were able to locate polling places, many were turned away and told to return later when the machines were repaired, or paper ballots obtained.
After the results in South Carolina were counted, John McCain was ahead of Mike Huckabee by fewer than 3,000 votes. Fred Thompson came in third with fewer than 300 votes more than Mitt Romney. Ron Paul was mostly unnoticed in a state where he spent mega-bucks on constant TV ads. While McCain happily claimed victory, his comments about the South Carolina Primary winner always getting the nomination (since 1980) may be a bit premature. In one small town in upstate South Carolina, less than 10% of the registered voters actually voted so it’s difficult to say what the results might have been if there had been a normal voter turn-out.
This coming Saturday, the Democrats are holding their hotly-contested primary in SC. John Edwards is hoping for a big showing in his home state, or his campaign may be over, even if he decides to stay in the race. Obama is hoping his Oprah-backing and the fact that almost 50% of registered Democrats in the state are African-American will give him the win. Meanwhile, Hillary’s team is counting on demographics and Bill Clinton’s support base to give her the nod. I just hope their pollings places are open and that the voting machines are working.
Tags: Barack Obama, Democrats, Fred Thompson, Hillary Clinton, John Edwards, John McCain, Michigan Primary, Mike Huckabee, Mitt Romney, Nevada, Nevada Primary, Politics, Presidential primary, Republicans, Ron Paul, South Carolina PrimaryLeave a Reply
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