Networks call North Carolina for Obama, Indiana ‘too close to call’

May 6, 2008

Late last week, Hillary Clinton seemed to be taking something of a risk raising expectation in North Carolina, telling voters, “This primary election on Tuesday is a game changer. This is going to make a huge difference in what happens going forward. The entire country — probably even a lot of the world — is looking to see what North Carolina decides.”

In retrospect, that probably wasn’t the best idea. Within a few minutes of the polls closing in North Carolina, all of the major networks called the state for Barack Obama. The speed with which the state was called suggests the margin was pretty comfortable for the Illinois senator. (ABC News already labeled it a “rout.”)

As for Indiana, with about a fourth of the precincts reporting, Clinton is cruising with a double-digit lead, though as I understand it, most of the data is coming from rural areas where Obama was expected to do especially poorly.

Stay tuned.

Obama beats Clinton by almost 30%! WOW!

  • I’ve seen other sites project her to be the winner – so do the people in Indiana

  • Do people in IN love to drink the kool-aid?

    Oh, little bear. There are so many reasons I’m a former Indiana resident, not least of which is their ability to consistently vote against self-interest and logic.

  • Within a few minutes

    I guess ‘immediately after’ is technically ‘within a few minutes of”.

    Can you imagine what the price of gas will be by the time they pass that tax holiday?

  • Late last week, Hillary Clinton seemed to be taking something of a risk raising expectation in North Carolina, telling voters, “This primary election on Tuesday is a game changer. This is going to make a huge difference in what happens going forward. The entire country — probably even a lot of the world — is looking to see what North Carolina decides.”

    Hillary has entered the same “zone” that McCain is in.
    She could say the moon is made of green smegma and get away with it.
    She could say she would “obliterate” 70 million people and get away with it.

    So I don’t expect anybody to say: “Gotcha!” on this.

    In other words: She is still alive and galloping on two good legs towards a lawsuit to seat Florida and Michigan in her favor.

  • Thank god. I was about ready to swear off politics completely and consider the country a lost cause if Hillary won North Carolina. I can’t even imagine the damage another 8 years of Bushian leadership would do to the country.

  • Hillary did appear in Northwest Indiana, that and the Rush vote will keep it close.

    But don’t worry. Indiana will be Obama land in the General.

  • She’s ahead by 8% in Indiana BUT the biggest counties– Obama strongholds– haven’t reported yet. If she wins by a squeaker she’s in trouble.

    Tee-hee.

    Also, OT, Rachel Maddow is so freaking hot– I’m a fool for cute girls with big, politically-obsessed brains.

  • Exit polling from CNN suggests a big “Rush vote” influence in IN.

    17% of voters said in a Clinton-McCain general election they’d vote for McCain. Interestingly enough, 41% of those individuals voted for Clinton anyways. That’s almost 6% of all voters polled. Sketchy?

  • First reports out of IN gave She-Unworthy-of-Naming a 61-39 edge (a 22-point spread); now it’s down to 55-45 (10 points) with only 50% of the precincts tallied. I seem to recall CBS calling an election wrong not too many years ago—maybe they’ve done it again.

    I’m looking forward to how the flying monkey brigade spins that NC speech of hers. Something truly Orwellian is called for here: “Defeat is Victory!”

    Or maybe something as little darker; a little more on the sinister, Auschwitz point-of-view:

    “Sieg durch Niederlage….”

  • I wouldn’t worry about her “game changer” comment, she’ll just throw in another “rule changer” comment.

    You know, like how based on voters who vote between 2pm and 2:45pm she’s ahead, therefore she’s more electable in November; that type of comment.

  • If Obama’s margin in NC holds she can forget her popular vote argument, no matter what kind of math she tries to use. And if she wins by single digits in IN while losing by 20 or more in NC, I don’t see how she can spin this as anything but a disaster.

  • I think Donna Brazile just inadvertantly showed her preference for Obama– when she was called on it she said she’s “undeclared” and not “uncommitted.”

    Hehe.

    Wolfie just made a coming up teaser about the disenfranchised nuns who couldn’t vote in Indiana.

  • Assumng the %IN reflects voters and not districts, there appear to be about 2.8 million voters in NC. Pennsylvania had 2.3 million. Meanwhile, assuming this is indicative of eligible voters, PA had 158 delegates while NC has only 115. That seems like a huge turnout.

  • DLC schlub Harold Ford is virtually conceding the nomination to Obama, and suggesting that Obama needs to put Clinton on as VP. Good luck with that!

  • My mail-in ballot (Oregon) came in the mail today and I filled it in right away. Months ago I figured my vote for the presidential nominee wouldn’t even matter since we’re near the end of the line.

    I also got to vote for myself (for precinct committee person)… 🙂

    We in Oregon have until May 20 to either hand deliver or mail in our ballots (in signed sealed envelopes). Actually, if they’re mailed they must be received by, not postmarked by, May 20. I always turn mine in by hand – they can go to the county clerk’s office or one of several official drop-off boxes. I can’t imagine voting any other way.

    Interesting results so far in Indiana and NC!

  • I can’t imagine voting any other way. -Hannah

    From your keyboard to the FSM’s ears. I’ve always admired the mail-in ballot system in Oregon and it’s success.

  • It’s now 63-47 (a 6-point spread) in Indiana, with 68% of the precincts tallied. Mathematically, the gap is closing faster than the vote is progressing. If she doesn’t start opening up a lead pretty soon, she could quite possibly be in trouble. The current rate of closure in the gap suggests a 1-to-2 point margin of victory—and that’s if the urban/suburban areas were to report at the same rate as the rural precincts (which they don’t seem to be doing right now).

    Maybe she can blame it on those “surplus-voter purges” that took place recently; the ones where there was found to be more registered voters in Indiana than there were people of voting age….

  • I always turn mine in by hand — Hannah, @19

    I would too, being a “belt and suspender” sort of person; it’s one less chain link that can get broken. Though I must say that, despite hearing all sorts of horror stories about USPO, I’ve not had a *single* bad experience with it in the 35.5 yrs I’ve been here. Never a piece of mail lost, everything delivered on schedule or earlier… Quite unlike the Polish PO I had been used to 🙂

  • It’s now 63-47 (a 6-point spread) in Indiana, — Steve, @21

    Calm down, Steve… Your excitement — and the resulting typo — nearly gave me a heart attack. Wasn’t 63%, (for a 110% total), though it is a 6-point spread 🙂

  • Indiana is down to a 4 point margin.

    No votes from Gary yet.

    The delegates from Indiana will split.

    Obama will net a big delegate gain from NC.

    So goodnight Hillary

  • libra, I am silently cursing the keyboard for not reminding me to check before posting. Why did they ever put the 5 and 6 next to each other? It’s just got to be a plot against me. :

  • why is NO ONE on TV commenting on the fact that all of the freaking candidates AGREED initially that if Michigan and Florida were to have their primaries early, their votes would not count? I mean, come ON!! She agreed to it in the beginning and now, because things are not going her way, she is forcing us to change the rules!!! this is the same elitist crap that we have been dealing with for the past 8 years!!! The Clinton’s have seriously broken my heart this year…We are in DESPERATE need of change.

  • The Obamabots have been screaming for months: IF they (Superdelegates) TAKE The NOMINATION away from him — we’r going to be MAD, we’ll Riot
    at the convention!

    Well …… just Wait a Minute … FIRST, he would have to HAVE the Nomination
    — BEFORE it could be taken away from him.

    He doesn’t HAVE the Nomination. The ONLY Way he can get it is By: The CHOICE of the Superdelegates …… SAME as CLINTON.

    THAT”S the RULES.

    Speaking of RULES ….. are YOU going to let the REPBULICAN Party CHOOSE
    your Presidential Candidate for you?

    ONE sellout Democrat in Florida Sponsored the BILL to SET the Democrat PRimary date ….. earlier than allowed by the Democratic Party …… AND ….
    THEN it was PASSED BY the REPUBLICAN Majority in control of Florida’s legislature.

    ….. So ….. those millions of citizens who VOTED in Florida should not have their VOTES COUNTED? …… Because of a REPUBLICAN Dirty Trick?

    The DEMOCAT Party LEADERS should just say …. ooooohhhhh K…… we’ll just ACCEPT the consequences of that REPUBLICAN Dirty Trick …. and LOSE thise election?

  • It was refreshing to see Michele Obama smile. For the past few months, she has had her bottom lip out like Bubba from Forrest Gump.

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