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 News from Around the Americas | January 2008 
Clinton Wins in Delegetless Florida
 John M. Broder - New York Times
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Miami - Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton won the Florida Democratic primary on Tuesday, a contest that generated extraordinary voter interest even though the result will have no practical impact because no delegates were at stake.
With 95 percent of the vote counted, Mrs. Clinton, of New York, was running ahead of Senator Barack Obama of Illinois, 50 percent to 33 percent. Former Senator John Edwards of North Carolina was third, with 14 percent.
None of the Democratic candidates campaigned actively here, fulfilling a pledge to the Democratic National Committee, which punished Florida Democrats for jumping the line by scheduling their primary before Feb. 5. But supporters of Mrs. Clinton and Mr. Obama worked hard to get their voters to the polls to make a symbolic show of strength.
Mrs. Clinton's victory was expected and may have largely reflected her prominence on the national political scene for almost two decades. She did well among those who cast their votes early; among late deciders, Mr. Obama matched her almost one for one, according to exit polls conducted by Edison/Mitofsky.
Mrs. Clinton flew late Tuesday to Fort Lauderdale from Washington, and in nearby Davie she thanked more than 1,000 supporters in a banquet room for a "tremendous victory." She was also seeking to reach Florida's television audience, which did not see any of the Democratic candidates before the primary because they pledged not to campaign here.
"Thank you so much, oh my goodness, thank you," she said to cheers. "You know, I could not come here to ask in person for your votes, but I'm here to thank you for your votes today."
Mrs. Clinton noted the record turnout of Florida Democratic primary voters in her remarks, and promised that, despite the lack of a formal campaign here, "all of your voices will go with me" if she was elected president.
She told the audience that she would withdraw American troops from Iraq, improve relations with Central and South American nations, and "continue to support democracy in Cuba."
She said that by waiting until the polls closed to land in Florida she was obeying party rules.
But some Obama supporters denounced Mrs. Clinton's act as cynical and urged voters and journalists to dismiss Florida as a meaningless beauty contest.
"The bottom line is that Florida does not offer any delegates," said Senator John Kerry of Massachusetts, the 2004 Democratic nominee for president. "It is not a legitimate race."
Dyeimia Johnson, 26, of Lauderhill, Fla., a town northwest of Fort Lauderdale, said she was aware that, technically speaking, her vote did not count.
"I'm still a Democrat, and I believe in the visions of Barack and Hillary," Ms. Johnson said, without revealing for whom she had voted. "So it's my right as a citizen, and I'm here to express it."
Mrs. Clinton had strong support among women, Hispanics, whites, older voters, early deciders and early voters in Florida. A majority of Democratic voters said she was the most qualified to be commander in chief, and a plurality said she was the most likely to unite the country.
Mr. Obama received the support of 7 in 10 black voters, but they made up less than 20 percent of the electorate. He did better among younger voters than older ones, but they did not support him as strongly as they had in earlier primaries, and he was unable to best Mrs. Clinton among them.
Mark Bubriski, communications director for the state Democratic Party, said the huge turnout showed the enthusiasm Democrats here had for the candidates and the prospect of reclaiming the White House after eight years of Mr. Bush.
"Florida is a microcosm of the nation," he said. "On Feb. 5 we have the closest thing to a national primary we've ever had in the United States. This is the last opportunity for voters in any state to have their voices heard before the whole country votes."
Mr. Bubriski said that he believed that ultimately Florida's 210 delegates would be seated at the national convention this summer, but that it would be up to the national party's credentials committee to determine how they would be allocated.
The party penalized Michigan, too, for voting before Feb. 5 by withholding its delegates. Mrs. Clinton "won" that race, on Jan. 15, but she was the only one of the major Democratic contenders whose name was on the ballot.
But no matter what happens at the convention, voters here on Tuesday were determined to make their choices felt.
Ruth Weiss, 80, a transplanted New Yorker who lives in Sunrise Lakes, said she cast her ballot for Senator Clinton. "It probably will count eventually, and this is an indication of who we think should be president," she said of herself and her husband, Manny, who also voted for Mrs. Clinton.
William Perry, 77, of Lauderhill, called the state and national parties' spat "stupid."
"Why punish your own party?" he said. "It doesn't make sense."
He said he had been vacillating between Mrs. Clinton and Mr. Obama but decided in the last two days to support Mr. Obama.
"What tipped me was the way Bill Clinton was going after him," said Mr. Perry, a retired banker who is black. "That just put the icing on the cake for me. I think he did more damage than he did good. He should have let her run her own campaign."
Reporting was contributed by Jeff Zeleny from El Dorado, Kan.; Patrick Healy from Davie, Fla.; Dalia Sussman from New York; and Carmen Gentile and Cristela Guerra from Florida.
With Florida Win, McCain Becomes a Frontrunner
David Espo & Liz Sidoti - Associated Press
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Sen. John McCain won a breakthrough triumph in the Florida primary Tuesday night, seizing the upper hand in the Republican presidential race ahead of next week's coast-to-coast contests and lining up a quick endorsement from soon-to-be dropout Rudy Giuliani.
"It shows one thing: I'm the conservative leader who can unite the party," McCain told The Associated Press after easing past former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney for his first-ever triumph in a primary open only to Republicans.
"We have a ways to go, but we're getting close" to the nomination, he said later in an appearance before cheering supporters.
Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton was the Democratic winner in a primary held in defiance of national rules that drew no campaigning and awarded no delegates.
The victory was worth 57 Republican National Convention delegates for McCain, a winner-take-all haul that catapulted him ahead of Romney in that category.
Romney, who has spent millions of dollars of his personal fortune to run for the White House, vowed to stay in the race.
"At a time like this, America needs a president in the White House who has actually had a job in the real economy," the former businessman told supporters in St. Petersburg.
Giuliani, the former New York mayor, ran third. It was his best showing of the campaign, but not nearly good enough for the one-time front-runner who decided to make his last stand in a state that is home to tens of thousands of transplanted New Yorkers. Several officials familiar with events said he intended to endorse McCain on Wednesday in California.
In remarks to supporters in Orlando, Giuliani referred to his candidacy repeatedly in the past tense — as though it were over. "We'll stay involved and together we'll make sure that we'll do everything we can to hand our nation off to the next generation better than it was before," he said.
Former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee ran fourth in the primary but told supporters he would campaign on. Texas Rep. Ron Paul was fifth, and last.
Florida marked the end of one phase of the campaign, the last in a series of single-state contests that winnowed a once unwieldy field.
The race goes national next week — McCain said it would be the closest thing to a nationwide primary as any event in history. Twenty-one states hold Republican primaries and caucuses on Tuesday with 1,023 convention delegates at stake.
Returns from 81 percent of Florida's precincts showed McCain, the Arizona senator, with 36 percent of the vote and Romney, the former governor of Massachusetts, with 31 percent.
In the overall delegate race, it was McCain 93, Romney 59, Huckabee 40. Paul has four and Giuliani one.
The victory was another step in one of the most remarkable political comebacks of recent times. McCain entered the race the front-runner, then found his campaign out of funds and unraveling last summer as his stands in favor of the Iraq War and a controversial immigration bill proved unpopular.
The war gradually became less of a concern after President Bush's decision to increase troop deployments began to produce results. McCain also sought to readjust his position on immigration.
By the time of the New Hampshire primary, he had retooled his candidacy and ridden his Straight Talk Express campaign bus to over 100 town hall meetings. He won in New Hampshire, stumbled in Michigan, but won the South Carolina primary last week, taking first place in the state that had snuffed out his presidential hopes in 2000.
McCain's previous triumphs this year, and in two states in 2000, came in elections open to independents as well as Republicans. He campaigned in Florida with the support of the state's two top Republican elected officials, Gov. Charlie Crist and Sen. Mel Martinez.
Romney's only primary win so far was in Michigan, a state where he grew up and claimed a home-field advantage. He also has caucus victories to his credit in Wyoming and Nevada.
A survey of voters as they left their polling places Tuesday showed the economy was the top issue for nearly half. McCain led his rival among those voters, blunting Romney's weeklong effort to persuade Floridians that his background as a businessman made him best-suited for heading off a recession.
McCain also benefited from the support of self-described moderates, as well as older voters and Hispanics. Giuliani ran second among Latino voters, according to preliminary exit poll data.
Romney was favored by voters opposed to abortion and to easing the path to citizenship for illegal immigrants.
About 40 percent of self-described conservatives supported him, as well, compared to about 25 percent for McCain.
The poll was conducted by Edison Media Research and Mitofsky International for The Associated Press and the television networks.
The Democratic primary was controversial by its very existence, an act of defiance against national party officials who wanted it held later in the year.
Even so, Clinton sought to emphasize her performance in the state, holding a victory rally as the polls were closing.
She challenged Barack Obama to agree to seat the delegates on the basis of the night's vote, but he demurred, saying he would abide by an agreement all Democratic candidates had made months ago.
"Those decisions will be made after the nomination, not before," Obama told reporters Tuesday on a plane from Washington to Kansas. "Obviously, I care a lot about the people in Michigan and a lot about the people in Florida. And I want their votes in the general election. We'll be actively campaigning for them." |
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