Clinton and Obama draw; McCain takes control in U.S. vote

By John Whitesides, Political Correspondent

In their hard-fought duel for the Democratic nomination, Obama won 12 states and Clinton took eight. Clinton's wins included the key prizes of California and New York on the biggest day of U.S. presidential voting ahead of November's election.

McCain won nine states, including key victories in California and big Northeastern states to take a daunting lead in the Republican race. He captured a huge haul of delegates who select the party's presidential nominee, in part because many of the 21 Republican contests were winner-take-all.

"Tonight, I think we must get used to the idea that we are the Republican Party frontrunner for the nomination," McCain told supporters in Scottsdale, Arizona. "And I don't really mind it one bit."

The mixed outcome in the coast-to-coast voting, with all contenders in both parties scoring at least five wins, appeared certain to prolong the hard-fought nominating races in both parties.

The Clinton and Obama camps said they expected the count of delegates for the night to be relatively even. "We think the delegates are going to be very close and we may end up with an edge there," Obama campaign manager David Plouffe said.

McCain, who lost the Republican primary race in 2000 to George W. Bush, has struggled to win over conservatives in the party, who have been unhappy with his views on immigration, tax cuts and campaign finance reform.

About 44 percent of Republican voters preferred a candidate who shared their values, while one-quarter wanted a candidate with experience.

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Obama scored victories in Georgia, Delaware, Alabama, Kansas, North Dakota, Connecticut, Utah, Minnesota, Colorado, Alaska, Idaho and his home state of Illinois. Clinton won Arizona, Oklahoma, Tennessee, Arkansas, Massachusetts, California, New Jersey and her home state of New York.

Because Democrats distribute delegates in proportion to their vote statewide and in individual congressional districts, candidates can come away with large numbers of delegates even in states they lose. Aides for both campaigns predicted the contest would continue for weeks or months to come.

Huckabee, a Baptist preacher and former Arkansas governor, won in Alabama, Arkansas, Tennessee, Georgia and West Virginia. Romney won North Dakota, Minnesota, Montana, Colorado, Massachusetts, where he served as governor, and Utah, which has a heavy concentration of Mormons. Romney would be the first Mormon president.

Huckabee's wins were fueled by strong support from evangelical Christians, and he split votes with Romney among conservatives unhappy with McCain's stances on immigration, tax cuts and campaign finance reform.

Clinton, a New York senator and former first lady, was battling a wave of momentum for Obama, an Illinois senator who would be the first black U.S. president. Obama has surged in national polls on his message of change.

Obama continued his strong showing among black voters but also expanded support among whites, winning 40 percent in Georgia, exit polls said. Clinton, who would be the first female U.S. president, won heavy support from women, exit polls showed.

(Additional reporting by Jeff Mason, Claudia Parsons, Steve Holland, Ellen Wulfhorst, Andy Sullivan; editing by Frances Kerry)