Obama nudges into slender first-time lead
Barack Obama went into today’s elections with a slight lead over his rival Hillary Clinton for the first time in the battle for the Democratic Party’s presidential nomination.
The young Illinois senator is looking to increase his advantage over the former First Lady with wins in Wisconsin and then in Hawaii’s Democratic caucuses, the state where he was born and where he still has family.
As the first polling centres opened this morning, the young Illinois senator had a handful more delegates than the former First Lady, with 1,262 compared with 1,213, according to CNN estimates.
Almost 100 Democratic delegates are available today as Wisconsin and Hawaii host the latest round in the race to gather the support of 2,025 delegates – the magic number needed to clinch the party’s nomination.
Mr Obama, who wants to be America’s first black president, has a string of eight consecutive wins behind him as Mrs Clinton’s campaign has hit a rocky patch, failing to win a single contest since Super Tuesday earlier this month.
An average of recent polls taken by independent website RealClearPolitics.com gives Mr Obama a four-point lead in Wisconsin, where 74 delegates are at stake, and results are expected to start coming in late tonight.
Results from Hawaii’s caucuses are not expected until about 8am GMT tomorrow.
On the campaign trail in Wisconsin, Mrs Clinton built on her message that Mr Obama was all style with no substance.
“We don’t need to have a beer with the next president. We had that president,” she said.
“But you know I’d be happy to have a beer too. We can talk about how to solve our problems.”
Mrs Clinton has focused on the state this week amid fresh hopes of an upset, after earlier concentrating on the larger contests in Texas and Ohio on March 4.
In a television advert screened in the state, the commentary referred to Mr Obama’s decision not to take part in a debate there, as it said: “Maybe he’d prefer to give speeches than have to answer questions.”
Earlier this week, the Clinton campaign also accused Mr Obama of plagiarising a speech given by Massachusetts governor Deval Patrick in 2006, in which he emphasised the importance of “just words” in American history.
But Mr Obama shrugged off the criticism, said Mrs Clinton has used his slogans in the past and ran his own campaign advert which said Mrs Clinton was guilty of “the same old politics”.
He added he has delivered on his promises for 20 years.
“Nobody knows better than I do this will require some work and perspiration,” he said.
“I know how hard it’s going to be to change this country... but nothing worthwhile ever happened in this country until someone tried something different. That’s what hope is.”
In the Republican contest, John McCain turned his attention to November’s general election as former Baptist preacher Mike Huckabee parried occasional suggestions – none of them by Mr McCain – that he should pull out of the race.
Earlier this week, former president George H W Bush was the latest high-profile Republican to endorse Arizona senator and former Vietnam prisoner of war Mr McCain.
Former Massachusetts governor Mitt Romney also urged his 280 delegates to back the party’s presumptive nominee.
