John Edwards surged to victory in Tuesday's South Carolina Democratic primary, positioning himself squarely in front of John Kerry's growing juggernaut.
Kerry, nearly written off two months ago, won five of Tuesday's seven state primaries and caucuses, solidifying his front-runner status, while Wesley Clark squeaked out a win in Oklahoma, edging Edwards by some 1,200.
And, in this political season's game of Survivor, Tuesday's results forced one candidate, Joe Lieberman, to quit.
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MIC SMITH/STAFF
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Sen. John Edwards celebrates Tuesday night at a restaurant in downtown Columbia.
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Propelled by his populist "two Americas" campaign, Edwards captured about 45 percent of the vote in South Carolina to Kerry's 30 percent.
The Rev. Al Sharpton captured 10 percent, eclipsing Clark, who had 7 percent, and Howard Dean with less than 5 percent.
"It's our time now! It's our time now!" Edwards' supporters chanted during a victory party at Jillian's, a restaurant in downtown Columbia.
A buoyant Edwards joined them moments later. "If the American people give me a shot at George Bush next November, I will give them back the White House," he told them to cheers.
Edwards' win in South Carolina, the first primary in the South and a test of candidates' strengths among black voters, came at a crucial time in the Democratic presidential marathon. After Kerry's big victories in Iowa and New Hampshire, Edwards said South Carolina was a "must-win." As Tuesday's primary approached, Kerry gained endorsements from Democratic heavyweights U.S. Sen. Fritz Hollings and U.S. Rep. Jim Clyburn. Tracking polls showed Kerry and Edwards in a dead heat.
But Edwards' fundraising machine kicked into high gear, and he made a strong finish, losing his voice as he canvassed colleges and churches across the state.
Kerry won handily in Arizona, Delaware, Missouri, New Mexico and North Dakota. Kerry told reporters the win in Missouri, the biggest prize of the night with 74 delegates at stake, was "fabulous" and said he had expected the loss in South Carolina.
"I think coming in second is enormous given where I've been," said the Massachusetts senator, who spent considerably less time in South Carolina than Edwards.
Kerry, whose rise has been fueled by a belief among Democratic voters that he offers the best chance to beat Bush in November, pointed to public opinion polls that showed him leading Bush in a one-on-one matchup.
"Just three weeks ago, John Kerry polled 1 percent in South Carolina," added Holly Armstrong, his South Carolina press secretary. "We were outspent almost 5 to 1 by the Edwards campaign and almost 4 to 1 by the Clark campaign in television ads."
Edwards' victory sets up a potential North-South battle for delegates, as the race shifts to Michigan and Washington on Saturday, where Kerry is running strong, and Tennessee and Virginia next Tuesday, where Edwards hopes to do well.
EXIT LIEBERMAN
The night's returns convinced Lieberman that his so-called "Jo-mentum," had turned into "no-mentum."
"Today, the voters have rendered their verdict, and I accept it," the Connecticut senator said. "Am I disappointed? Naturally."
It was a sad end for a candidate who entered the race more than a year ago with the highest name recognition among the candidates, mainly because of his status as Al Gore's running mate in 2000.
Lieberman never was able to overcome a campaign crippled by a slow start, tepid fund-raising and a moderate message aimed at a mostly left-of-center electorate. Supporters said Lieberman's support for the war in Iraq also cost him votes, as did a low-key style that never captured the attention of Democrats hungry for a fighter to take on Bush.
Tuesday also was a critical test for retired Gen. Clark, who won his first primary in Oklahoma. That could keep him in the running.
Despite an enthusiastic band of campaign workers in South Carolina, former front-runner Dean failed to capture the imagination of Palmetto State voters, and he continued his downward slide in the other states.
As the returns came in, Dean's team worked fulltime to convince reporters and supporters that Kerry's victories hadn't sewn up the race.
Dean officials also took aim at the media, reminding supporters that pundits had mistakenly called Dean the likely nominee just a few weeks ago.
By capturing 10 percent of the vote in South Carolina and beating Clark and Dean, Sharpton increased his credibility as a potential player in the Democratic national convention later this year.
Sharpton visited several Columbia neighborhoods Tuesday, saying that he would continue his campaign no matter what the day's results brought, with a goal of taking at least 300 delegates to the convention. Sharpton said he expected to win delegates in Michigan, Virginia, Wisconsin, Georgia, New York, California and Florida.
LONG WAY
But in South Carolina, the night belonged to Edwards.
"It's a long way from that little house in Seneca, S.C., to here tonight," he told the jubilant crowd at his victory party.
Hundreds of supporters and journalists packed Jillian's for the celebration.
In a sense, Edwards straddles the "two Americas" he talked so much about in his campaign stump speeches. He was born in Seneca, the son of a mill worker, eventually becoming a millionaire trial lawyer and a North Carolina senator.
Edwards' campaign focused hard on the plight of workers, describing how President Bush had helped create one "America that does the work while another reaps the reward" and "one America that pays the taxes while another America gets the tax breaks."
Flanked by his parents and wife and children in a room billowing with red, white and blue balloons, Edwards promised to rebuild jobs, improve health care and uplift those in a dual education system.
"Tonight, all of you said protecting America means protecting American jobs," he said. "To build one America means providing opportunity to all our children no matter where they live, no matter who their family is, no matter what the color of their skin. Tonight, you said that the politics of lifting people up beats the politics of tearing people down."
During Tuesday's victory party, state Sen. Robert Ford, D-Charleston, said Edwards will do well in other Southern primaries. "What John Edwards has done has drawn back a lot of the white Dixiecrats that have left the party."
Pushing away balloons and chanting for Edwards, lawyer John Nichols of Irmo said Edwards won in South Carolina because his message was positive and consistent. "He has the character and the intellect and the will to win."
Columbia Mayor Bob Coble described the results as "a tremendous win, the type of win we need to carry the South in the next election."
After his victory speech, Edwards waited with supporters in a back room watching the close race in Oklahoma.
Tuesday's contests exposed the contenders to a far more diverse electorate than the overwhelmingly white participants in the Iowa caucuses two weeks ago or in last week's New Hampshire primary. Nearly half the voters in South Carolina were black, and nearly one in six who cast ballots in Arizona's primary were Hispanics, according to polling place interviews.
The race turns next to Michigan and Washington state, which are holding primaries or caucuses Saturday and have a combined delegate total of 204.
Kerry is expected to do well in Michigan, and the Edwards campaign said it hopes to do well next Tuesday in Tennessee and Virginia.
Victories in those states, the aides said, would help them raise questions about Kerry's viability throughout the region.
