McCain takes Fla. primary; Clinton gets delegate-free win

Sen. John McCain won a hard-fought primary here Tuesday in a fierce contest with Mitt Romney, carrying off the biggest prize so far in the race for the Republican presidential nomination.

McCain's victory in a contest that pre-election polls showed too close to call means he surpasses Romney in major state victories. He also gained a critical edge that will allow him to raise money and get voter attention in the week before Feb. 5, when 22 states hold primaries or caucuses.

"It gives him a big leg up going into Super-Super Tuesday," says Maurice Carroll, director of the Quinnipiac Polling Institute.

The race also appeared to derail the White House bid of Rudy Giuliani, who was atop national polls all last year for the GOP nomination. But after sitting out all the early contests, he found Florida voters had lost interest in jumpstarting his campaign and finished third.

The Associated Press reported that Giuliani and McCain are in discussions about the former New York mayor endorsing the Arizona senator.

In the last days of the campaign, McCain and Romney fired away at each other. Romney said McCain was weak on the economy; McCain called Romney soft on defense. Fighting for the votes of conservatives, both called the other a liberal.

His win, McCain said Tuesday, "shows one thing. I'm the conservative leader who can unite the party."

The Arizona senator gains 57 delegates, half the usual number awarded because the national Republican Party punished Florida for holding its primary before Feb. 5.

Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton flew to Florida after polls closed Tuesday to celebrate her victory in the Democratic primary, although she won no delegates. The national Democratic Party stripped Florida of all delegates for moving its primary, and candidates held fundraisers here but did not campaign.

McCain won even though independents, key to his wins in New Hampshire and South Carolina, could not vote in this primary.

The economy was by far the top issue for voters, according to interviews of voters taken as they left polling places: 45% cited it as their top concern compared with 21% who named terrorism and 14% who cited immigration.