Feb. 5
News of the Feb. 5 states
From NBC's Domenico Montanaro
The results are finally in and after counting about 17,000 provisional ballots, Hillary Clinton has won the New Mexico caucuses 48.8% to 47.7% over Obama, per the New Mexico Democratic Party.
Here's the vote total:
Clinton: 73,105
Obama: 71,396
Edwards: 2,157
Richardson: 1,305
Kucinich: 574
Biden: 122
Dodd: 81
TOTAL: 149,779
From NBC/NJ's Adam Aigner-Treworgy
Speaking with reporters today, McCain adviser Charlie Black said, "To date, we have 775 delegates, Romney has 284, Huckabee has 205. It takes 1,191 to clinch the nomination. There are 963 left to be chosen, so Romney or Huckabee would have to have all of them -- all of them -- to get to 1,191. Now you can't do that because a majority of those 963 are chosen in proportional primaries, which means you'd have to get 100% if the vote to get them all.
"It's virtually impossible for Romney or Huckabee to be the nominee just based on the arithmetic," Black added. "I see it as virtually impossible. I'm superstitious like my boss, I don't want to say anything's impossible, but it's virtually impossible on the arithmetic."
From NBC’s Domenico Montanaro
With almost all of the voting in, here’s the popular vote calculation for the Democrats:
Clinton 48.97% (6,967,302)
Obama 48.04% (6,835,447)
Based on totals on MSNBC.com, there are still some outstanding votes. There is only 82% reporting in Minnesota; Arkansas is 92% in; Arizona is 93% in; California is 96%; Illinois is 97%; New Mexico is 98%; Alaska looks like delegate votes not raw vote.
From NBC’s Andy Merten
It seems that everyone wants to be the underdog, these days.
This morning on a conference call with reporters, Clinton strategist Mark Penn repeated several times that the Obama campaign is now the “establishment” campaign -- citing superior January fundraising, high-profile endorsements, and even Sunday’s Super Bowl ad.
Fast forward to less than an hour later: In a press conference in Chicago, Obama maintained that he is still the underdog. “Senator Clinton is a formidable opponent,” he said, calling her organization a “political machine honed over two decades.”
VIDEO: Sen. Barack Obama, in Chicago Wednesday, comments on Tuesday's nation-wide primaries, calling it a "big victory."
“From my perspective, this makes her the frontrunner,” he added.
So Feb. 5 has come and gone, with neither Democratic hopeful yet ready to assume the mantle of lead candidate.
From NBC's Domenico Montanaro
The official delegate numbers will be trickling in during the day today. Keep an eye on First Read for updates as we know.
As of 3:15 am, the delegate totals were...
GOP TOTALS (As of 3:15AM 02-05)
2/5 Overall
McCain 423 516
Romney 130 207
Huckabee 102 142
Paul 5 9
Others 0 7
DEM TOTALS (As of 3:15AM 02-05)
2/5 Overall
Clinton 534 582
Edwards 0 26
Obama 422 485
Other 0 0
But keep in mind that several hundred are still being diced up.
Obama won 13 states: Alabama, Alaska, Connecticut, Colorado, Delaware, Georgia, Idaho, Illinois, Kansas, Minnesota, Missouri, North Dakota, Utah. Clinton won eight states: Arizona, Arkansas, California, Massachusetts, New Jersey, New York, Oklahoma, and Tennessee. New Mexico hasn’t been called, but Obama has a very slight lead there.
The New York Times: “Senators Hillary Rodham Clinton and Barack Obama carved up the nation in the 22-state nominating contest on Tuesday, leaving the Democratic presidential nomination more elusive than ever… It was a night of drama as millions of Democrats cleaved sharply between two candidates offering them a historic first: The opportunity to nominate a woman or an African-American to lead their party’s effort to reclaim the White House. Yet it was also a night when neither Mr. Obama nor Mrs. Clinton could decisively lay claim - or even secure an edge - to the nomination, assuring an electoral fight that will unfold for weeks to come.”
The Boston Globe: “Obama and Clinton began yesterday essentially tied at two victories each after voting in the first four states. And that is more or less how the day ended: Neither Obama nor Clinton scored a decisive win nationally.”
CONTINUED >>
McCain won nine states: Arizona, California, Connecticut, Delaware, Illinois, Missouri, New Jersey, New York, and Oklahoma. Romney won seven: Alaska, Colorado, Massachusetts, Minnesota, Montana, North Dakota, and Utah. And Huckabee won five: Alabama, Arkansas, Georgia, Tennessee, and West Virginia.
The New York Times: “Senator John McCain of Arizona won the most states and appeared poised to win the most delegates on Tuesday with impressive primary victories in the delegate-rich states of California, New York and Illinois. Mike Huckabee, the former Arkansas governor, revived his candidacy with victories across the South. Their strong showings posed a serious challenge to the candidacy of Mitt Romney, the former Massachusetts governor, who vowed to press on with his campaign after winning in Montana, North Dakota, Minnesota, Massachusetts, Utah and Alaska.”
The Washington Post says McCain “surged closer toward the Republican nomination yesterday by capturing the biggest Super Tuesday states, including California, but failed to knock out his rivals, who deprived him of victories across GOP strongholds in the South and West… Former Arkansas governor Mike Huckabee scored a surprising sweep of his native South, while former Massachusetts governor Mitt Romney picked up a number of states in the West but fell short in critical battlegrounds that would have established him as McCain's primary challenger. Huckabee and Romney vowed last night to stay in the race as it moves to Virginia, Maryland and the District on Tuesday.”
CONTINUED >>
From NBC's Chris Donovan
MCCAIN
9 states
3 red states /6 blue states
ROMNEY
6 states
4 red states / 2 blue states
HUCKABEE
5 states
5 red states
OBAMA
13 states
9 red states / 4 blue states
CLINTON
8 states
4 red states / 4 blue states
CONTINUED >>
From NBC/NJ's Adam Aigner-Treworgy
PHOENIX, Ariz. -- Just a few minutes before John McCain was scheduled to speak here at the Biltmore Hotel, the crowd was relatively subdued. Slightly older and well sated by food and drink, there had been surprisingly little cheering, chanting and screaming throughout the night when a news network called a state for McCain.
Not unlike many members of the media, it seemed the audience here was still trying to figure out how to judge a victory in this near-national primary, but when McCain finally did come out and began his speech he immediately addressed their confusion.
"We've won primaries in the west, the south, the Midwest, and the northeast," McCain said, trying to put the scope of their victory into perspective. "And although I've never minded the role of the underdog and have relished as much as anyone come from behind wins, tonight, I think we must get used to the idea that we are the Republican Party frontrunner for the nomination for President of the United States."
Frontrunner was the only word that the audience heard, and it was enough to end their silence. A chant broke out as the audience began repeating, "Mac is Back" -- the popular mantra that has come to epitomize McCain's rise from the political ashes.
CONTINUED >>
NBC News' updated delegate totals...
GOP TOTALS (As of 12:30PM 02-05)
2/5 Overall
McCain 290 383
Romney 58 135
Huckabee 56 96
Paul 5 9
Others 0 7
DEM TOTALS (As of 12:30PM 02-05)
2/5 Overall
Clinton 199 247
Edwards 0 26
Obama 79 142
Other 0 0
