Obama continues winning streak in primary voting

By Mary Daly

Published Feb. 22, 2008

Sen. Hillary Clinton, D-N.Y., and Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., are both arguing for experience over eloquence after Sen. Barack Obama, D-Ill., achieved his tenth consecutive victory in Tuesday’s primaries.

“I will fight every moment of every day in this campaign to make sure Americans aren’t deceived by an eloquent but empty call for change,” McCain said Tuesday night at a speech in Ohio.

On Tuesday, Wisconsin and Washington held their primaries, and Hawaii held its Democratic caucus.

Democrats Abroad, a collection of Democrats in more than 30 countries, also voted in favor of Obama.

About 65 percent of global voters went for Obama, while 32 percent voted for Clinton. Democrats Abroad awards a total of 22 delegates.

In Wisconsin, where both Democratic candidates had been ardently campaigning, Obama defeated Clinton 58 to 41 percent. He was awarded 42 delegates to Clinton’s 32 delegates.

Obama and Clinton split female voters in Wisconsin, according to CNN exit polls. Obama won over two-thirds of the male vote, as well as all income levels, including the lower income voters Clinton has targeted in her campaign.

On the GOP side, McCain triumphed over former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee, further solidifying his status as the Republican front-runner.

Although he came away from Tuesday with all wins, McCain still doesn’t have the support of all conservatives.

In Wisconsin, 10 percent more voters who called themselves “very conservative” favored Huckabee over McCain, according to CNN exit polls.

McCain won half the voters who said they were somewhat conservative and two-thirds who were moderate.

Although he lacks unified support from conservatives, 76 percent of Republican voters said they would be satisfied with McCain as the party’s nominee. But 44 percent also claimed he was not conservative enough.

In the Hawaii Democratic caucus, people arrived in record numbers at polling places all over the islands to vote.

Obama won 76 percent of the vote and 14 delegates in Hawaii, where he was born and still has family. After the results came in, Clinton gave a speech similar to McCain’s, expressing the sentiment that the president must have experience.

“It’s about picking a president who relies not just on words but on work,” Clinton said. “While words matter, the best words in the world aren’t enough unless you match them with action.”

In Houston, Obama addressed supporters and said America needs new people in government in order for change to occur.

“The problem that we face in America today is not the lack of good ideas,” Obama said. “It’s that Washington has become a place where good ideas go to die.”

Obama went on to encourage Texans to vote in their March 4 primaries, saying he needs the people of Texas to help him achieve change.

Clinton is also looking to Texas and Ohio to help her regain momentum. Recent exit polls suggest Obama is gaining more of the blue-collar voters, the demographic that Clinton was hoping to win in those states.

On Wednesday, The International Brotherhood of Teamsters endorsed Obama. It is the third labor union to give Obama their support.

The endorsement could help Obama win in such states as Ohio and Pennsylvania, which have some of the highest levels of unionization in the country, according to the AP.

Trevor Turner, Disability Caucus chairman of the College Democrats of America, said he believes the endorsement won’t harm Clinton’s chances at the nomination.

“It’s very possible for Clinton to make a comeback,” Turner said. “Obama may have picked up Teamsters, but Clinton has a greater total of union endorsement.”

Despite being down in the delegate count, Clinton remains optimistic she will receive the nomination.

“You know I can take a punch, and I’ve come back,” Clinton said in a speech on Tuesday.