Politics

NEW YORK (CBS) ― Democrats Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama were running a tight race on Super Tuesday, with Obama leading in the race for states, but Clinton holding a small edge in the battle for convention delegates.

Clinton won the night's biggest prize with a victory in delegate-rich California. She also racked up victories in Massachusetts and six other states among the 22 holding Democratic contests on Super Tuesday, according to CBS News projections.

In a big night for John McCain in the Super Tuesday battle for GOP delegates, CBS News estimates that the Arizona senator will win the delegate-rich, winner-take-all states of New York, New Jersey, Missouri, Arizona, Connecticut and Delaware, as well as the states of California, Illinois and Oklahoma.

The former first lady is projected to win in Arizona, Oklahoma, Tennessee, New Jersey, New York -- which she has represented in the Senate since 2001 -- and Arkansas, where her husband, former President Bill Clinton, once served as governor.

Speaking to supporters, she signaled that the race for the Democratic nomination wasn't over.

"I want to congratulate Sen. Obama on his victories tonight," she said. "I look forward to continuing our campaign and our debates about how to leave this country better off for the next generation, because that is the work of my life."

Obama is projected to win 11 states, including primaries in Georgia, Alabama, his home state of Illinois, and the Northeast states of Connecticut and Delaware -- both once viewed as Clinton strongholds. He is also projected to win the caucuses in Utah, Idaho, Colorado, North Dakota, Minnesota and Kansas, where he had the endorsement of the state's popular female governor and family roots on his mother's side.

"Our time has come, our movement is real, and change is coming to America," Obama said to cheering supporters in Chicago.

CBS News also projects that Mike Huckabee will win Alabama, Georgia, Tennessee and his home state of Arkansas. It represents a better-than-expected showing for the Baptist minister and former Arkansas governor. Earlier today, Huckabee won the West Virginia state GOP convention.

In addition, CBS News projects that Mitt Romney will take Massachusetts, where he served as governor, Utah, a winner-take-all state with a large Mormon population, Montana, Minnesota, Colorado and North Dakota.

So far today, McCain has won 395 delegates, Huckabee has won 110 delegates and Romney has won 93 delegates. Overall, McCain leads with 484 delegates, followed by Romney with 128 delegates and Huckabee with 117 delegates. (Full delegate count.)

"Although I've never minded the role of the underdog...tonight I think we must get used to the idea that we are the Republican Party frontrunner for the nomination of the President of the United States," McCain said. "And I don't really mind it one bit."

Already, both campaigns were looking ahead to Feb. 9 contests in Louisiana, Nebraska and Washington state and Feb. 12 primaries in Maryland, Virginia and the District of Columbia. And increasingly, it looked like the Democrats' historic race between a woman and a black man would go into early spring, possibly longer.

The de facto national primary was the culmination of a relentless campaign that moved into overdrive during Christmas week.

After a brief rest for the holiday, the candidates flew back to Iowa on Dec. 26 for a final stretch of campaigning before the state's caucuses offered the first test of the election year. New Hampshire's traditional first-in-the-nation primary followed a few days later, then a seemingly endless series of campaign days interspersed by debates and a handful of primaries and caucuses.

Along the way, the poorest performers dropped out: Democratic Sens. Joe Biden and Chris Dodd, New Mexico Gov. Bill Richardson and Rep. Dennis Kucinich of Ohio; and Republican Reps. Duncan Hunter and Tom Tancredo, and former Tennessee Sen. Fred Thompson.

Former Sen. John Edwards pulled out of the Democratic race last week, and former New York Mayor Rudy Giuliani left the Republican field.

Edwards offered no endorsement as he exited, instead leaving Obama and Clinton to vie for help from his fundraisers and supporters.

But Obama benefited from an endorsement by Sen. Edward M. Kennedy, who made a series of campaign appearances in California as well as his home state of Massachusetts.

Giuliani quit the race and backed McCain in the same breath, clearing the way for the Westerner in New York and New Jersey.

Giuliani's departure also made it possible for California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger to back McCain. Schwarzenegger said he would not have done so as long as the former mayor was in the race.

Obama and Clinton spent an estimated $20 million combined to advertise on television in the Feb 5 states.

Obama spent $11 million, running ads in 18 of the 22 states with Democratic contests. Clinton ran ads in 17, for a total of $9 million.

Neither advertised in Illinois, Obama's home state.

(© 2010 CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. The Associated Press contributed to this report.)