Editorial
After the Clinton win in New Hampshire
America's first woman or first black president this year?
The race for the US presidential nominations has suddenly turned rather electric for both Democrats and Republicans. With Hillary Clinton managing to scrape past Barack Obama in the New Hampshire primary after her humiliating third place finish in the Iowa caucuses and John McCain beating Mitt Romney, the battle lines have clearly become more sharply drawn. The Republicans will yet have many more triumphs and tumbles amongst themselves to go through before anyone emerges as a clear frontrunner for the nomination. It is, however, the Democratic contest that has without question become the major focus of interest at this point.
Senator Clinton needed to win in New Hampshire. A loss would have damaged her candidacy, perhaps irretrievably. Now that she has won, she can afford to concentrate on the other primaries that are coming up and must win enough of those to convince Americans that she is ready to be the Democrats' choice for the White House in November this year. But that will be no easy job, considering that Obama continues to excite the public imagination with his theme of change. It will be places like Nevada, where the next primary will be fought, that could hint at the future of the candidates. And then will come Super Tuesday. Mrs. Clinton has all along emphasised her grasp of the issues, her experience, as a factor that ought to propel her to the presidency. Iowa proved, however, that large numbers of Americans are quite willing to choose novelty over experience; and even in New Hampshire Obama's supporters ended up snapping at the heels of the Clintonites.
The November elections could end up being an altogether Democratic affair, given that the Republicans continue to be in a state of disarray. For all his time in Vietnam and then the US Senate, McCain may not win the White House. Before that, he needs to beat Romney conclusively for the nomination. And that is still a far-from-settled question. That leaves people wondering whether America this year will have its first woman or first black as president. The next few weeks will be crucial for the candidates, and especially so for Clinton and Obama.
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