McCain widens his lead

Winner-take-all rules in ten Republican primary states and the continued presence of Mike Huckabee in the race combined to give John McCain a substantial delegate lead over Mitt Romney coming out of Super Tuesday.

On the Republican side, Mr. McCain carried New York, along with California, New Jersey, Arizona, Delaware, Connecticut, Illinois, Missouri and Oklahoma. Michael Huckabee prevailed in his home state of Arkansas, as well as Alabama, Georgia, Tennessee, and West Virginia, while Mitt Romney won his home state, Massachusetts, as well as Minnesota, Montana, North Dakota, and the state that is home to his Mormon faith and where he oversaw the Olympics in 2002, Utah.

The rules for yesterday's showdown in more than 20 states gave it the potential to be more decisive on the Republican side, where 10 states conducted winner-take-all contests that give the victor a state's entire convention delegation even for a narrow win. The Democratic Party forbids winner-take-all primaries and requires a system that allocates delegates in proportion to the state's popular vote or by congressional district.

Meanwhile, the race between Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama tightened up.

For Democrats, Super Tuesday became a super standoff, with the two contenders each notching significant victories. Mr. Obama's camp claimed an early lead in delegates awarded yesterday, but that was before results were in from key Western states such as California, where the former first lady was favored.

One of Mrs. Clinton's most impressive wins of the night came in Massachusetts, where highly publicized endorsements of Mr. Obama by senators Kennedy and Kerry apparently failed to sway voters. Mrs. Clinton easily took the state, 56% to 41%.