US News Story

30 August 2008 08:41 BST

Clinton and McCain claim wins in US presidential race

Sunday, 20 Jan 2008 19:52

Hillary Clinton wins Democrat caucuses in Nevada and Republican John McCain emerges victorious in South Carolina primary

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Hillary Clinton and John McCain have earned crucial wins in the contest to succeed George Bush as president of the United States.

In the Nevada caucuses Ms Clinton beat Democrat rival Barack Obama into second place after earning 51 per cent of the vote to his 45 per cent.

Mr McCain emerged victorious in the South Carolina Republican primary, with Arkansas governor Mike Huckabee second on 30 per cent and Fred Thompson trailing on 16 per cent.

Massachusetts governor Mitt Romney was the clear winner in the Republican's Nevada contest with 50 per cent of the vote, although most candidates had focused their campaigns in South Carolina.

Speaking in Las Vegas, New York senator Ms Clinton, who is neck-and-neck with her Illinois counterpart Mr Obama overall, hailed her supporters.

"I just want to say how grateful I am to Nevada and all of the people who worked so hard in this campaign," she said.

"I guess this is how the west was won."

Arkansas senator Mr McCain, who lost a bitter South Carolina primary to eventual winner Mr Bush in 2000, responded to his victory by saying: "Thank you, my friends, and thank you, South Carolina, for bringing us across the finish line first, in the first-in-the-south primary. It took us a while, but what's eight years among friends.

"In the course of this campaign, I have tried as best I could, to tell people the truth about the challenges facing our country, and how I intend to address them."

While Democrat voters are faced with a straight choice between Mr Obama and Ms Clinton for their party's presidential nomination, the Republican battleground is more fractured.

The split field will be complicated further in the Florida primary at the end of January, in which former New York mayor Rudy Giuliani enters the contest in earnest.

Mr Giuliani is hoping Floridians will propel him into the crucial 'super Tuesday' vote of February 5th, when people in 22 states cast their votes. End of story

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