Super Tuesday

Ironically, the most mediocre day of the week has become one of the most important for the 2008 race to the White House.

Super Tuesday, also known in some circles as Super Duper Tuesday, Giga Tuesday, Tsunami Tuesday, and (my personal favorite) The Tuesday of Destiny is the day in which a whopping 24 American states hold their Presidential Primaries - with the Democrat and Republican party each voting to decide which candidate they want spearheading their campaign for the Presidency.

Some think today might make-or-break the campaigns of key candidates. Others think it's just going to stoke the fires and make the battle for nomination even hotter. Either way, for most of the United States, today is when we first get the chance to make our contribution to the American democratic process.

New Jersey is just one of the 24 voting states - but a hotly contested one. 127 Democratic delegates and 52 Republican representatives are up for grabs. Today, all talk is about who people want rooting for them in the race to the White House.

For the Republicans, it looks like John McCain has the New Jersey election all sewn up. The more moderate of the Republican candidates, his policies appeal to a broad audience across both parties and he also has the backing of former New York mayor Rudy Giuliani, who carries a lot of clout in a state neighboring New York.

The Democratic primary is little less clear. Hillary is a clear favorite, carrying similar weight to Rudy as New York's favorite senator. However, in traditionally liberal New Jersey, Obama is winning a lot of hearts and minds and has growing support from Democratic delegates in urban centers like Newark.

As I drove to work today, a gaggle of Princeton students were hoisting 'Obama' placards in the air at the Lawrenceville junction. The Clinton campaign was noticeably absent.

In fact, she wasn't the only one.

During the Local Elections in New Jersey, I was a little dismayed that none of the candidates had done any campaigning in my area. Despite the stakes being so much higher in this election, I felt largely the same way about the Presidential Primaries. It's very disappointing to have your opinions (and vote) totally ignored because of geography or the demographic of your particular neighborhood.

Rudy Giuliani's campaign came unstuck because voters thought him opportunistic and mercenary (ignoring the smaller states in favor of 'make or break' competitions like Florida.) Candidates from both the Republican and Democratic parties would do wise not to make the same mistakes in electoraly important places like New Jersey!