Presidential race could still be muddled after Super Tuesday
LOS ANGELES -- California is the gold standard in Super Tuesday's delegate hunt, involving a complicated political map of primaries and caucuses in more than 20 states across the country.
Feb. 5 will be the largest single-day delegate grab in presidential campaign history.
Predicting an outcome is difficult, if at all possible, because of the closeness of the races on both the Democratic and Republican fronts and the sudden withdrawals of Democrat John Edwards and Republican Rudy Giuliani.
Still here is an assessment of how the contests are shaping up in key states:
California:Among Democrats, Sen. Hillary Clinton of New York has long been a favorite, but Sen. Barack Obama of Illinois has drawn nearly even, setting up a television advertising war.
The 370 delegates at stake will be partially apportioned based on vote percentages.
Among Republicans, Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger's endorsement of Sen. John McCain should give the Arizona senator a boost, but some conservatives are wary of McCain. Former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney has a chance to pick off delegates. Republicans here award three delegates to the winner of each of the state's 53 congressional districts.
New York:Clinton's Senate base should be considered her territory, but Obama has not ceded it altogether.
McCain, was leading in polls even before he was endorsed by former New York Mayor Giuliani, who dropped out Wednesday.
New Jersey:Giuliani's endorsement of McCain could help the senator win here. McCain had a big lead over Romney and former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee even before Giuliani dropped out.
Among Democrats, advantage Clinton.
Illinois:Clinton's birthplace but Obama's Senate base. It could be Obama's biggest big-state win.
Among Republicans, McCain planned a pre-Super Tuesday campaign stop in the state. A recent poll showed it a close race. Edge, McCain.
Massachusetts:This should be Romney territory. And if he doesn't win here, he's in big trouble all over.
Clinton is the favored Democrat but could be susceptible to a late Obama surge.
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