This is not surprising, since the press has announced months ago that the nomination had been decided, and the primary in Montana has no binding effect on the state's delegation to the national convention.
The primaries all resulted in victories for John McCain. It is correct to give him some credit for the wins, although they seem for the most part a vote of resignation to the fact that he is the destined nominee of the Republicans in the fall. In South Dakota, Ron Paul, Mike Huckabee, and Mitt Romney were all on the ballot with Senator McCain and "Uncommitted". Senator McCain won 70% of the votes. The totals were McCain 42807(70%), Paul 10117 (17%)m Huckabee 4334(7%) Romney 1980(3%) and Uncommitted 1791(3%). Again, with no campaigning against him by the other candidates in the state, thirty percent of the Republican voters turned out to vote against the preseumptive nominee. This is a sign that John McCain still has to win the Republican voters before he can court the independents and disaffected Democrats who must also be won if McCain is to have a chance of being elected. The South Dakota vote must also be regarded as good news for the Paul movement, since he finised second in the balloting. It was a distant second, but it is an indication that the Republican voters were not just voicing a vague discontent witht the McCain candidacy but voting for a change of direction by the party.
The results from the primaries in New Mexico and Montana brought better news for Senator McCain, and somewhat troubling news for Ron Paul and his supporters. In New Mexico, with 96% of the precincts reporting, the vote is McCain 91526 (86%), Paul 14987 (14%). This is the kind of result McCain would be expected to get in all the primaries, once he is assured of the nomination. It is consistent with earlier two candidate contests between McCain and Paul. 14% is not a bad showing for a candidate consistently dismissed as marginal, but it is not as strong as some recent showings.
In Montana, McCain did better than in South Dakota, although not as well as in New Mexico. His 77 % of the primary vote was certainly better than than his 22% showing in the February caucuses. With 95% of the precincts reporting, the vote was McCain 67,532 (77%), Paul 18,716 (21%), No preference, 1896 (2%). The decision on any pledging of the delegates and the naming of the delegates to the National convention will be decided at the state convention on June 30. The Paul campaign is prepared to make a major push at the convention, and it will be interesting to see what comes out of it.
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Published: Wednesday, June 4, 2008
Last modified: Wednesday, June 4, 2008
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