Not Over Yet...

Kansas Republican Caucus Results:

Huckabee: 60%
McCain: 24%
Paul: 11%
Romney: 3%

Louisiana Republican Primary Results:

Huckabee: 43%
McCain: 42%
Romney: 7% (No longer running; name was still on ballot)
Paul: 5%

Washington Republican Caucus Results: (87% Reporting)

McCain: 26%
Huckabee: 24% (Difference of 200 votes)
Paul: 21%
Romney: 16%
Uncommitted: 13%


Well, what all the pundits learned yesterday, to their surprise, was that this race is not over yet. Huckabee won resoundingly in Kansas, adding to the list of red, southern states that McCain can't win. Just imagine how big the margin might also have been in Georgia, Alabama, and Tennessee had Romney and Huckabee not been splitting support. In such a scenario, Huckabee probably would've come out on top in Oklahoma and Missouri, the latter of which McCain carried on the backs of the metropolitan areas. If Thompson hadn't made his last stand a virtual exercise in tearing down Huckabee in South Carolina, Mike would've been victorious there as well .

This is an indisputable trend. McCain regularly does well in cities and states that aren't in step with the core of the Republican party. Yet, when he does enter red territory, he's greeted rudely with defeats everywhere he turns or close victories caused by other circumstances. Especially when the precincts of rural counties report, it looks like McCain is treated more like an outsider than a fellow conservative.

Coupled with that is the fact that some people may be voting for Huckabee as a protest vote (although, clearly, some Romney supporters weren't afraid to still vote for him). Let me tell you: I'll take all of those I can get. You may have to hold your nose to vote for Huckabee, or you may have resigned yourself to a McCain nomination, but, if you can't vote for Huckabee on his own merits, tell McCain with your ballot that you are not going to blindly follow him lockstep through his maverick expeditions into liberal territory. The saying goes that "Republicans fall in line." Well, I'm not that kind of a Republican, and I don't think you are either.

The results in Kansas could have been much more easily marginalized if the results from Louisiana hadn't strengthened them. Huckabee's narrow victory there demonstrated that he's not a one-state post-Romney wonder. However, the jubilation over the Pelican State is tempered, because of weird state party rules. If no candidate receives greater than fifty percent of the vote, then all the state's delegates go to the convention unpledged. It's a nonsensical format, but one thing is positive: McCain does not have those delegates added to his total automatically.

Washington state is an interesting story. The turnout was extremely low for the Evergreen State's caucus on the Republican side, and the state has a primary on the 19th. Yet, for a purple state, Huckabee sure gave McCain a run for his money there. But, I should add, it's not over. Thirteen percent of the precincts have yet to report in Washington; McCain and Huckabee are only separated by 200 votes. The final result could be much closer--or even totally different--even though McCain has been declared the winner. Keep an eye out there.

The battle for Huckabee doesn't get any easier. In fact, since he gained no delegates from Louisiana, the events of yesterday served mostly as a prolonging of and a momentum boost for the campaign. Now, our eyes turn to Virginia, Maryland, and the District of Columbia. Those aren't exactly Alabama or Georgia, but we'll see what happens. Virginia is winner-take-all, which makes it a virtual must-win for Huckabee, as almost every contest is from here on out. If the District of Columbia went Huckabee's way, it would be a stinging reprimand of McCain and his insider status.

If you live in any of those states, get out and vote! Make your voice be heard!