Obama, McCain Win Ice Pelted Primaries!

(Alexandria, Virginia)

Politics is often called a "slippery slope" and tonight in the nation's capitol, they weren't kidding. With Washington, DC, Virginia and Maryland holding the "Potomac Primaries" today, the region was pelted by a late afternoon ice storm.

Traffic was gridlocked and some local roads and highways looked more like a demolition derby. A judge in Maryland even kept polls open an extra 90 minutes until 9:30 p.m. so people could vote.

In Virginia, polls closed firmly at 7 p.m., despite the storm. Pardon the pun, but Sen. Barack Obama (D-IL) may have "iced" Sen. Hillary Clinton, (D-NY). Obama was declared the winner with 63% of the vote to Clinton's 36%. That's a landslide, and it could mean more bad news for her campaign. Democratic delegates are awarded "proportionally" so if they race had been tight, Clinton would have stayed even with Obama in the overall convention delegate count. Instead, it was a blow out, she can ill afford. If it happens in a few more primaries, it could be over.

On the GOP side, it was much tougher for Sen. John McCain, (R-AZ). Ninety minutes after the polls closed, he was finally declared the winner over former Gov. Mike Huckabee (R-AR), 51% to 41%. The crowd at McCain Headquarters in historic "Old Town Alexandria" cheered wildly.
Exit polls showed Huckabee did extremely well in state's more conservative, Christian Evangelical communities. McCain on the other hand, did far better in the Washington, DC suburbs which have more moderates and independent voters. Virginia is a "winner take all" on the GOP side, so McCain wins all 60 delegates, with 0 for Huckabee.

McCain and Obama were also declared the winners of the Maryland and Washington, DC primaries. In DC it was a blowout: Obama 76%, Clinton 24%. For the GOP in DC: McCain 67%, Huckabee 17%.

It could take several more days to sort out how many people may not have been able to vote because of the bad weather, and whether that had any impact on the final outcomes of any of these races.

I will be "live" at 7:45 Wednesday morning with Ross McGowan on KTVU's "Mornings on 2."

And check back here at www.MarkCurtisMedia.com for the latest updates!