Monday, February 11, 2008

Your Complete Guide To The Potomac Primary


Tomorrow we get the Potomac Primary: Virginia, Maryland, and DC hold their presidential primaries for both parties. All are "open" primaries--anyone can vote (but only in one or the other party's contest--not both).


Here's what to look for: polls say Obama will trounce Hillary in all three contests, extending his string of four strong wins over the weekend. If the spread is less than 10 points in Virginia and Maryland, then Hillary has exceeded expectations. If Obama scores over 60% in either or both states (he should do very well in DC), then he's exceeded expectations. At the end of the day, the question will be by how much has Obama padded his small delegate lead. And, does he become the "front-runner"?


On the GOP side, the question is whether Huckabee can catch McCain in Virginia. The Survey USA poll released late today shows Huckabee surging--"closing strong"--in Va. If he wins, it will reveal further weakness in McCain's position. McCain should carry Maryland and DC without too much problem, but if he gets less than 50% in Maryland, it's another sign of trouble.


By the same token, if Huckabee can't get within 10 points in Virginia, and gets clobbered in Maryland, then his miracle is probably over.


Best of all for us Potomac'ers: our votes count, for a change!

No comments: