Potomac Primary

Marc Fisher discussed the results of the Potomac Primary in real time, taking your comments, questions and predictions to look at the results of the voting in Washington, D.C., Virginia and Maryland.

Voters Guide: Local Elections 2007

A transcript follows.

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Marc Fisher: Welcome aboard, folks, on what should be a fascinating and possibly even meaningful evening. After months of whining, some of it from yours truly, about how this region's votes never count for anything in the primaries--heck, I even ran a Pretend Primary series over on the blog (and wasn't that a whole lot of fun?)--here we are with primaries that, gulp, matter.
So here's the plan: I'll be with you at the top of each hour throughout the evening, open for your comments and questions as we watch the numbers tally. I'll be over on the newfangled web video thingy with our friends from washingtonpost.com, Newsweek and Slate toward the latter parts of each hour. So come ahead with your stories of what happened at the polls today, your observations about what's happening tonight and your crystal ball gazing as we move forward.
Most of the candidates have moved on--our moment in the sun is over and Wisconsin beckons--but we have reporters with each campaign and you'll hear from them throughout the evening here on the big site.
And we'll reconvene here tomorrow at 1 p.m. to see what a night's sleep has added to our ability to digest tonight's returns.
So, is this the big Obama Mo moment, another Clinton comeback, a victory lap for McCain, or a zesty elbow in the ribs administered by the pesky Mike Huckabee? What's your headline on the evening?

Posted 7:22 p.m., 2.12.2008

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Marc Fisher: Ok, so it already looks like this is Obama's night in all three jurisdictions. And exit polling indicates that Mike Huckabee is going to give John McCain a real scare, if not an outright defeat, tonight.

Posted 7:23 p.m., 2.12.2008

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Richmond: I sadly look at tonight and wonder, how long can Hillary stay in the race? I suppose I'll vote for Obama, and he has put together a fantastic campaign. It seems like going on after losing 2 - 1 in the last EIGHT contests is hurtful to the party.

Marc Fisher: Yes, but it's important to note that this part of the primary calendar was an apparent advantage for Obama from the start--Clinton's folks have been telling supporters for weeks now that February would be a difficult passage. But can the Clinton campaign really succeed with a mini-Giuliani strategy of waiting for the March and April votes?

Posted 7:25 p.m., 2.12.2008

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San Francisco: Wow, they sure called Virginia early! Any idea of Obama's margin of victory?

Marc Fisher: No, and that could end up being the most revealing story of the night on the Democratic side. Virginia was the place where Clinton fought the hardest--she and the former president both made multiple appearances there this weekend--and it's where demographically she should have done the best.

Posted 7:25 p.m., 2.12.2008

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Broomes Island, Md.: What do you think Marc? The all around icy weather, the tie up at Springfield, closure of 395 -- going to affect the Northern Virginia vote?

Marc Fisher: We're hearing that ice is causing problems on roads everywhere from Front Royal, Va., to the Eastern Shore of Maryland. That's likely to have a greater impact on voting in Maryland and Washington, D.C., where polls are still open (till 8 p.m.), whereas Virginia polls closed at 7.

Posted 7:27 p.m., 2.12.2008

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Kensington, Md.: This is slightly off topic perhaps, but I was wondering what the feasibility is of Mark Warner joining the eventual Democratic nominee as the vice presidential candidate. If he won his Senate race and the ticket won in November, a la what Joe Lieberman was trying to do in 2000, couldn't Gov. Kaine simply appoint a replacement senator? Or do things not work that way? Politically awkward perhaps, but wondering if it's a possibility.

Marc Fisher: I asked that question of Mame Reilley, Mark Warner's longtime political adviser, on today's edition of Raw Fisher Radio (you can hear the full interview with her and with Prince George's County State's Attorney Glenn Ivey right here on the big website--just search for Raw Fisher Radio), and she said it's possible that either Clinton or Obama might turn to Warner. But there are also important voices in the Democratic primary who think Warner is more valuable as the guy who is likely to win a Senate seat that's been solidly Republican for a long time. (Mark Warner is running to take the seat of the retiring Sen. John Warner.)

Posted 7:29 p.m., 2.12.2008

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Palo Alto, Calif.: Now that Obama has crushed Billary in the Potomac Primary, does this mark the beginning og the end of their run?

(I didn't know my high school was running a primary, I won elected office at PSHS, but the mational media didn't cover it.)

Marc Fisher: Clinton has been asked that question nearly every hour over the past few days and she's of course arguing that this is just a blip in the campaign, that the tide will turn her way when she gets to states such as Ohio and Texas. But with eight consecutive victories and some very large margins in those wins, Obama is building a case for the kind of momentum that sinks other campaigns. He's also on the verge tonight of gaining some of the extra delegate votes that accrue to winners whose margins are powerfully strong. We don't yet know whether he will manage that kind of win in Virginia or Maryland tonight, but that's what to watch for in the coming hours.
In either event, there's no way Clinton is giong to concede in any fashion--rather, she's likely to ratchet up her campaign. How she does that will be the big story of the coming weeks.

Posted 7:32 p.m., 2.12.2008

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Maryland: How is it when Huckabee is beating McCain by a larger margin than Obama is beating Clinton is Obama a declared winner and McCain and Huckabee too close too call?

Marc Fisher: The network and news organization projections are not based on the election returns we're all seeing right now. Rather, they are based on the exit polls conducted earlier in the day--and in the case of the Republican race in Virginia, those polls show a very tight result, with as little as one percent between Huckabee and McCain. That's why no one will call that race for quite some time to come.

Posted 7:34 p.m., 2.12.2008

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Summit, N.J.: If Obama wins the most elected delegates, but the super delegates overturn that and give the nomination to Hillary, what will be the reaction of all those Obama delegates on the convention floor in Denver?

Marc Fisher:
Well, you're getting a few steps ahead, but you're right to do so because a lot of folks in both candidates' camps are studying all the possible convention scenarios--it's that close a race. So the issues that will have to be resolved include just how and whether to count the votes cast in Michigan and Florida, the states that were being punished by the Democratic party for having moved their primaries too early in the calendar. And then the role of superdelegates will certainly be widely discussed, but that's likely to be resolved more amicably than the Michigan-Florida issue, because superdelegates are mostly elected officials who will want to join the bandwagon of whomever is emerging as the apparent nominee.

Posted 7:36 p.m., 2.12.2008

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Silver Spring, Md.: My gut tells me that tonight will really turn the tide and momentum towards Obama. She is falling faster than the man jumping out of the airplane in her TV ads. An Obama wave is sweeping across America and Hillary is drowning. In my opinion, the breadth and size of Obama's wins tonight will really alter the storyline in the Democratic nominating process going forward. Your thoughts please, Marc?

Marc Fisher: Yes, the Obama margins in all of tonight's primaries will be telling. But probably not decisive. Even if Obama takes all three primaries by large margins, because the delegates are apportioned by congressional district, the win in delegates will seem much less dramatic than the wins in popular vote. Result: Obama is likely to move into the lead in delegates, but not by a huge number.

Clinton will try to spin this as a not very meaningful moment, and Obama will portray it as the beginning of her end.

Posted 7:38 p.m., 2.12.2008

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Washington, D.C.: How much longer before Billary goes really, really negative on Obama?

Marc Fisher: Hard to imagine that she goes terribly hard with personal attacks, though you might start to see more of that from purportedly independent groups. To both campaigns' credit, they've pulled back from the brink time and again, recalling that party unity is essential if they are to win in the fall.

Posted 7:39 p.m., 2.12.2008

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Anonymous: COME ON! It's not like Obama is squeaking out these victories. What's his smallest winning percentage from the weekend, 25 percent? I don't even care about the Democratic race (to be honest) but if this was Hillary beating up on Obama there would be an outcry for him to drop out.

And by the way, good for him. He must have a heck of a campaign staff.

Marc Fisher: I agree--there will and should be an outcry for Clinton to concede that Obama is rolling toward victory. But Clinton will correctly come back with the fact that no matter how big these wins are, the delegates are still very close.

Posted 7:42 p.m., 2.12.2008

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Arlington, Va.: Hi Marc - wow, what a turnout! When I got to my Arlington polling place (Key Elementary) at 7:30 a.m. there were at least 75 people there and the line was 50 percent longer when I left! I was No. 182 to vote. Also, my precinct used blue cards to ID those taking Democratic ballots and white for those taking Republican, and I saw nary a white card anywhere. The poor Republican election judge must have felt like the Maytag repairman!

Marc Fisher: I've been hearing about long, long queues all day--in some cases, people who ordinarily don't wait at all found themselves at the end of 90-minute lines. That's of course a wonderful thing to behold, even if it does muck up people's workdays.

Posted 7:43 p.m., 2.12.2008

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Hyattsville, Md.: Marc,

Kinda off topic, but I'm so thankful I voted early this morning in Maryland. I am so darn angry that local transport departments didn't salt the roads well enough this evening. I had a really dangerous commute home and waited for the bus for close to an hour because of an accident that had shut down most of Route 1 in College Park. I can't believe evening classes weren't canceled tonight. I'm usually with you on the silliness of canceling things for snow but, seriously, people don't need to be on the roads this evening except to vote!

Marc Fisher: Our traffic folks are saying that, of all things, it was the District that had its salt trucks out in force this afternoon while the Maryland and Virginia units were still taking it easy. In any event, we're now hearing that voting is being extended in Maryland, so it's going to be a long night there.

Posted 7:45 p.m., 2.12.2008

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Cumberland, Md.: While Warner offers good credentials to be VP, I'm wondering if Jim Webb would be a better choice -- especially if Obama is the nominee. Obama's glaring weakness going up against McCain is military experience -- it seems to me Webb could be a huge asset on this point alone. Any thoughts on this -- anyone?

Marc Fisher: Obama would very much want to pick someone with a strong foreign policy background, and probably someone older who could match up well against McCain. That doesn't describe Mark Warner, but Sen. Jim Webb might fill that role and he would offer a similar kind of crossover appeal to independents as McCain has.

Posted 7:47 p.m., 2.12.2008

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Maryland: Thanks Marc, so the networks and many Web sites are sitting on the results until the polls close. Do you think they will wait to announce Maryland results until after 9 p.m. tonight now that polling times are extended? I appreciate you doing these chats.

Marc Fisher: Thanks for the kind words--I wouldn't put it quite that way. Nobody is sitting on results--the returns you see on our and other web sites are delivered in real time direct from the state and local elections boards, so you're seeing them just a couple of minutes after we do. What does get withheld are exit poll results, and for very good reason. It would be wrong to put out exit poll results before polls have closed because that could very well mess with voters' minds and cause some to stay home. There's just no justification for doing that. In addition, exit polls are not precise instruments, and so when they show a close race, as they do in the Huckabee-McCain contest in Virginia tonight, it's smart to hold back on any great and grand conclusions based on exit polling and wait for real numbers. But when there are large margins, as in the Obama-Clinton votes tonight, exit polling allows analysts to draw some meaningful conclusions early in the evening.

Posted 7:50 p.m., 2.12.2008

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Proud to Be a Democrat: Never thought I would say it. I have always lived in states with closed primaries and have always registered a Democrat but never truly identified with the party. Today when the poll officials confirmed I was a Democrat I was thrilled to say yes. Defying the convention I voted for Obama and the husband voted for Clinton. But we would gladly vote for either in the general. And the weeping African American woman outside the polls was so touching. "I never thought I'd see the day." Really, the whole thing brought tears to my eyes.

Marc Fisher: Good observation--I was at Obama's rally at the University of Maryland yesterday and saw many such scenes. Talking to older black voters was especially moving--a good number of them spoke with genuine surprise and satisfaction about the fact that this country is lending this degree of support to a black candidate for president. No matter how this election turns out, that revelation--and it is nothing short of a revelation to many I spoke with--will stay with this country for a long time.

Posted 7:52 p.m., 2.12.2008

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Washington, D.C.: I believe Hillary will revert to slime tactics: last minute mailings questioning Obama's record on choice, phone calls emphasizing his middle name "HUSSEIN," etc. This is classic Clinton campaigning, and apparently it worked in New Hampshire.

Marc Fisher: I'd be shocked if you saw anything remotely like that. Look back at the South Carolina debacle, which the history books may one day call the turning point of this campaign, in large part because an apparent resort to race by the Clinton campaign backfired badly and turned many longtime black Clinton supporters into avid Obama fans.

Posted 7:53 p.m., 2.12.2008

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Arlington, Va.: I had to wait 90 minutes in line at my Ballston polling place this morning starting at 10:30. I saw many people leave because the wait was just too long. Arlington needs to get on the ball and split this precinct up. There are so many hi-rise buildings here full of politically active people that we need more polling places. If my time in line is any indication, I think Hillary might do better than people think. Lots of old folks and tons of professional women talking about how Hillary might be their only chance to vote for a woman for a long time.

Marc Fisher: Polling places that become overwhelmed in a hot presidential race are often nearly empty in local and off-year elections, so it's a balancing act that elections boards have to play. It's generally considered more problematic to add on extra polling places than to make folks stand in long queues--the confusion caused by changing people's polling places is worse than the frustration of having to wait in a long line.

Posted 7:54 p.m., 2.12.2008

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Maryland: I'm trying to get this. How do polling places turn in results? Does this happen throughout the day or all at once when the polls close?

Marc Fisher: All at once at the end of the day. The methods of reporting in still vary considerably. More and more places report electronically, but some still rely on poll workers to call in results by phone. And if things go at all wrong, good old driving the ballots in to the elections office is still done in many places.

Posted 7:59 p.m., 2.12.2008

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Arlington, Va.: If Obama is serious about the unity thing (and I really hope he is), he could do a lot worse than picking Chuck Hagel (R-Neb.) -- solid on foreign policy, Vietnam vet, good vote on Iraq war, a little gray hair. One question: can two Senators on the Foreign Affairs Committee offer enough breadth of experience on the executive side of the ledger?

Marc Fisher: Interesting pick--that would certainly neutralize the Sam Nunn/Hagel/Bloomberg group that has been playing with the notion of supporting a third party candidate for the past year or so.

Posted 8:00 p.m., 2.12.2008

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Marc Fisher: Interesting early returns in Virginia--Obama is rolling up the massive margins you'd expect in places such as the city of Richmond (76-23), but he's also hugely ahead in Alexandria, which demographically would seem to be a place where Clinton might score well. Obama's up by 66-34 there at the moment. Statewide, Obama is on top by 61-38 with about 20 percent reporting. On the GOP side, it's tight as a drum--uh-oh, he's getting all Dan Rather on us!--with Huckabee up over McCain by 47-45.

Posted 8:03 p.m., 2.12.2008

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Ashburn, Va.: Hi there...what is an exit poll anyway and how can they call the Democratic race based on that?

Marc Fisher: An exit poll is a survey conducted by news organizations in which polltakers approach voters as they come out of the polls and ask them whom they voted for and a bunch of demographic questions. The results are tallied and saved until after the polls close. That gives us a snapshot of voters' attitudes that can be used to project winners and, more important, analyze who is voting for whom--by sex, race, age, etc.

Posted 8:09 p.m., 2.12.2008

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San Francisco: Hi Marc,

If Obama wins in Wisconsin and Hawaii (a home state for him) next week, does that mean Hillary will have to win both Texas and Ohio? Can she win one and not the other and still be viable?

Thanks

Marc Fisher: Yes, Clinton would have to win both and do so decisively to win back anything like momentum in March. There will be a long lull in the primary calendar in late February and what the candidates do during that time will be fascinating to watch.

Posted 8:11 p.m., 2.12.2008

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Ashland, Ore.: Hi Marc, from an old fan who moved to Oregon this year, aren't the D.C. polls closed now? When can we expect returns? I expected an immediate call for Obama once the doors shut.

Marc Fisher: Yes, polls are now closed in the District. They are being held open in Maryland until 9:30 p.m. because of the dangerous ice situation that has developed on local roads this evening.

Posted 8:11 p.m., 2.12.2008

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Marc Fisher: No D.C. returns are in quite yet.
In Virginia, McCain has now edged past Huckabee, up 46-45 with about a third of the vote in.

Posted 8:13 p.m., 2.12.2008

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Never Pull a Lever: I have to say growing up in Philadelphia and the 'burbs I also went with my parents and grandparents to vote. I loved going into the voting booth and pulling that lever. The optical scan sheets in the District were terribly anti-climatic and the computer today in Maryland was as exciting as ordering on Amazon. I think I will always feel slightly cheated by this.

Marc Fisher: There's nothing like pulling the little levers on the Votamatics and then recording your vote with a big pull on the mega-lever. That had power and drama. Connecting the arrows on the D.C. ballots has a chintzy, annoying feel to it, especially since you have to use those pathetic little pencils. But even that has more majesty than touch screen voting, which feels as underwhelming as it does unreliable. (Of course that's probably an unfair comment on my part, since I don't have the same judgment about, say, touch screen banking.)

Posted 8:15 p.m., 2.12.2008

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Clifton, Va.: Marc, I thought you'd like the contrast in literature handed out by Clinton and Obama. Hillary's first picture is her surrounded by Latinos with the fakest smile of all time painted on her face.

Barack's is bigger, and says "Change Begins With You." This makes two primaries I've voted in in 45 years, and Obama was my man.

I want inspirational leadership, not warmed-over leftovers.

Marc Fisher: Yes, the way in which he is running his campaign likely says something about Obama's skills beyond his speaking manner. The Obama TV ads are winning a lot more kudos from critics than the Clinton spots.

Posted 8:20 p.m., 2.12.2008

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washingtonpost.com: Md. Extends Voting Hours Because of Bad Weather (Post, Feb. 12)

Marc Fisher: It will be a long night in Maryland, the main impact of which will be a delay in seeing who wins the Al Wynn-Donna Edwards congressional race in Prince George's and Montgomery counties.

Posted 8:21 p.m., 2.12.2008

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Washington, D.C.: Polls suggest that Obama does better among the better educated and more affluent, while Hillary has a broader appeal to those with fewer years of formal education and a lower income. Any thoughts on this breakdown?

Clearly, Hillary came from a fairly privileged background.

Marc Fisher: That's indeed what we've been seeing in a number of states--Clinton's strength has come with voters in the $50,000 and under income range. It will be interesting to see how Obama does in parts of Virginia that are heavily white and generally Republican, but which Mark Warner scored well in in his race for governor.

Posted 8:22 p.m., 2.12.2008

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Washington, D.C.: Marc,

I find it downright insulting that The Washington Post refuses to cover any third-party political candidates. As someone who proudly voted for Cynthia McKinney today, I would like to see how many votes she received. The Washington Post has not published one article about her campaign. Do you believe this lack of coverage is intentional?

Marc Fisher: Well, having written a column just last week that focused on the also-rans in the Wynn-Edwards congressional contest, I don't buy your premise. But you're certainly correct that less popular candidates and third party efforts generally get less notice than the big major party contenders. That's a reflection of popular support and interest. Yes, there's a chicken-egg quandary here, and yes, media attention can make a big difference for a small-time candidate, but that attention ought to be earned. When Ron Paul began to get a lot of notice from voters around the country, he got a commensurate amount of ink in the media.

Posted 8:32 p.m., 2.12.2008

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Cumberland, Md.: I read yesterday and today how officials were expecting a huge turnout -- possibly a record. Yet, at my polling place in Western Maryland, the only people out were candidates for local races. They both told me that turnout had been extremely light. The poll workers confirmed it. I was in and out after voting for president, delegates, Congress, and city council faster than the line at a McDonald's. Granted the weather was bad, but roads and sidewalks were clear and well treated. I hope this is the exception state wide, but I am really disappointed with my neighbors for not turning out. With all we have seen in the past eight years about the value of a vote and the price others have paid so we can vote, this really saddens me.

Marc Fisher: Interesting--we have no Maryland numbers and won't until quite late because of the weather situation, but the Virginia numbers are showing very strong turnout here in the Washington area, though perhaps less so in more remote parts of the state.
Also very interesting: In rural Wise County in extreme western Virginia, Clinton is thrashing Obama by 79 percent to 18 percent, but in semi-rural Fauquier County on the edge of the D.C. metro area, Obama is up by 59 percent to 40 percent.

Posted 8:35 p.m., 2.12.2008

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Marc Fisher: I'm going to shift over to the video stream for a little while now and will be back here with you closer to 9 p.m. Please send in your comments and questions now.

Posted 8:36 p.m., 2.12.2008

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Marc Fisher: And we're back here, now with a pretty clear but pretty narrow John McCain victory in Virginia, and strong margins for Barack Obama in Virginia.
McCain is winning by a small margin statewide but is taking every one of the Washington area suburbs by comfortable distances, cementing the Huckabee candidacy's image as a regional phenomenon.

Posted 9:16 p.m., 2.12.2008

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Arlington, Va.: Mark,

I've been going over the county by county results, I was curious to see in how many places Edwards was getting 1 or even 2 percent of the vote. While I saw him on ballot this morning, I'm surprised by this. Is this voter error, die-hard Edwards supporter or people who haven't heard that he had dropped out?

Marc Fisher: It's probably a combination of diehard supporters and folks who just don't like either Obama or Clinton. I ran into several such people at the Obama rally in College Park yesterday, folks who just don't think either Obama or Clinton can beat McCain. In one striking interview, a middle aged black couple from Prince George's County argued that this was the year for the Democrats to stick with a white guy. Ok, well, takes all kinds.

Posted 9:18 p.m., 2.12.2008

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Raleigh, N.C.: What's your take on Clinton's deputy campaign manager Mark Henry choosing tonight, of all nights, to resign? I then saw a senior advisor of the campaign on MSNBC critiquing the campaign's flaws early on. Sinking ship?

Marc Fisher: It certainly doesn't look good, especially coming on top of this weekend's switch at the top of the Clinton campaign machinery. The sense of disarray or fraying can be a powerful force--everybody loves to watch something crumble. Building something up again is harder to do and harder to demonstrate.

Posted 9:20 p.m., 2.12.2008

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McCain Fan, Va.: It looks like Fisher Blog Intensity matches Democratic voter intensity, as every question mentioning candidates thus far in the chat has to do with Clinton and Obama.

And yet I remain confident that my guy, John McCain, will win in November. Wish he'd won going away, a la Obama, but he's still got some work to do.

Marc Fisher: Good point--in fact, Huckabee's strong showing in Virginia is in many ways the best story of the night. It points out once again an essential weakness in the McCain campaign. Was McCain right to spend recent days trying to shore up his appeal to Republican conservative insiders or should he have waged a much more energetic and visible retail campaign in Virginia?

Posted 9:22 p.m., 2.12.2008

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Others: Any significance in the fact that 9 percent of Republicans in Virginia voted "other" and only 1 percent of Democrats did the same?

Marc Fisher: Nice observation. That does indeed say something.

Posted 9:23 p.m., 2.12.2008

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Fayetteville, Ark.: Hello. Could you please comment on the stunning margin for Obama among African Americans (90/10 in Virginia). Do you think there will be long-term consequences from this in either the general election or beyond? Thanks much.

Marc Fisher: That's especially impressive given how closely the Clintons identified themselves with African-American voters over all these years. I think in the end the South Carolina tactics used by the Clintons will be seen as the moment when they lost much of the black vote.

Posted 9:25 p.m., 2.12.2008

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New York, N.Y.: Marc, my sister in Richmond says some polling places ran out of Democratic ballots. I don't think it's going to affect any outcomes, but people were annoyed at the delays and wanted polls to stay open later. It does speak to turnout, though.

Marc Fisher: Quite right--check this out. In Virginia, which has not voted for a Democrat in a presidential election since 1964, Obama and Clinton tonight have well more than twice as many total votes as McCain and Huckabee--660,000 to 320,000 so far. That's very impressive.

Posted 9:26 p.m., 2.12.2008

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Anonymous: So if the Clinton campaign "expected" these losses, why did both her campaign manager and deputy campaign manager (tonight) resign? there is no logic.

Marc Fisher: It's all a matter of spin--the Clinton campaign was trying to send the message that tonight's vote wouldn't matter because these were states where Obama was destined to win because of demographics (read: lots of black voters) yet both Bill and Hillary Clinton devoted considerable time to Virginia over the past few days--so clearly the campaign thought they had a chance to defy expectations here. You didn't see much of John McCain in Virginia, so different campaigns made different calculations about the state.

Posted 9:29 p.m., 2.12.2008

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Raleigh, N.C.: The big story, to me, is that Obama sliced into Hillary's strengths, and held his own. How did Obama manage to beat Clinton by 12 points among white males?

Marc Fisher: Big Mo. The power of a rock star candidate. The sense of impending doom surrounding the Clinton campaign. Growing comfort among white voters with the idea of an Obama candidacy.

Posted 9:30 p.m., 2.12.2008

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Washington, D.C.: As a DC resident, it is embarrassing that the polls have been closed for over an hour and there are NO RESULTS posted yet. What the heck is happening at BOEE?

Marc Fisher: Not good things. Perhaps it's the icing, but since poll results are electronically transmitted, that doesn't make a whole lot of sense. We're hearing it could be as much as another hour before we get any significant D.C. votes.

Posted 9:31 p.m., 2.12.2008

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Alexandria, Va.: Marc -- I'm no fan of hers, but can the press treat Hillary any worse? The garbage that MSNBC has thrown her way, the most unflattering photos possible, etc. It just seems like the press sees Hillary Bashing as the seasonal sport. It's my main reason for not supporting her. Four years of this would be unbearable.

Marc Fisher: Media coverage tends to reflect popular attitudes toward any celebrities, politicians included. I don't put much stock in the idea that there are media conspiracies, but there are coverage trends that reflect the zeitgeist, and when a candidate is down and falling, there is a collective piling on that occurs. Watch for that to happen in the coming days.

Posted 9:35 p.m., 2.12.2008

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Salt Lake City: Ha ha ha -- got a laugh out of your comment about not wanting to confuse people by changing the polling location. I don't think I've voted in the same place twice since moving to Utah three years ago. A hotel this time, library last November, office building in '06, and assorted places before that (all within a 5 minute drive of my house). At least they send out postcards a couple weeks in advance with the location.

Thanks for doing this evening chat -- it is fascinating to watch the margins develop!

Marc Fisher: Thanks. Getting moved around is cumbersome and annoying, but far more dangerous than that, it can suppress the vote, especially in places where people have voted in the same locale for decades on end. Every year at this time, I get peppered with calls and email from old folks who are deeply upset that their polling place has been changed.

Posted 9:36 p.m., 2.12.2008

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Alexandria, Va.: Marc--

I work 10 miles from my home in Alexandria, VA and it took me TWO HOURS to get home because of the weather. By the time I got home, my polling place had been closed for 15 minutes.

Maryland extended its voting hours -- why didn't Virginia? I'm feeling pretty disenfranchised right now.

Marc Fisher: Virginia had a closing time an hour ahead of Maryland's and the ice didn't really set in till after nightfall in much of the area. Yes, it was bad out there, but not till the very end of the Virginia voting day.

Posted 9:37 p.m., 2.12.2008

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D.C. Republicans: I think the total number of D.C. Republicans that come out and vote today will be interesting to see. Any chance it cracks into the 4 digits?

Marc Fisher: I bet it does, but not by a whole lot. Here's my question--how close will the Statehood/Green party turnout come to beating the GOP's?

Posted 9:38 p.m., 2.12.2008

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Arlington, Va.: Hillary didn't vote on the telecom immunity amendments. Finding that out at 3:30 p.m. was enough to make me decide I couldn't vote for her. I have to wonder how these candidates can justify neglecting the jobs to which they've been elected to make campaigning their top priority. It certainly isn't leaving me with much faith.

Marc Fisher: Well, ok, but in an election in which all three of the major remaining candidates are senators, you're going to see a lot of that from all of them.

Posted 9:39 p.m., 2.12.2008

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Los Angeles: Can Obama beat McCain?

Marc Fisher: Can he? Sure. Anything can happen. You have two reasonably to very popular guys with tremendous political skills. Both are moralists of a sort, something the country seems to crave at this point. Both have reputations for straight talk. Both seem to break the mold of the overly packaged politician. One's a hero and the other's a historic figure. Could be a whale of a race.

Posted 9:40 p.m., 2.12.2008

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Silver Spring, Md.: The Post called MD for Obama with 0 percent of precincts reporting. He must have really stomped Clinton in the exit poll. Do you know what the survey said?

Marc Fisher: I haven't seen the numbers yet, but yes, stomped.

Posted 9:41 p.m., 2.12.2008

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Ann Arbor, Mich.: In retrospect, do you think Hillary crying in New Hampshire had a big effect? It's her largest margin of victory, no?

And, as a Detroit high school teacher, I'm moved beyond words at the reaction of the inner city students to Barack Obama. Regardless of the outcome, he's inspired a generation.

Marc Fisher: Absolutely right--this is one of the untold stories of this campaign. In every inner city school I go to, kids who have never paid the slightest bit of attention to politics are suddenly following this as if it were the playoffs in their favorite sport.

Posted 10:08 p.m., 2.12.2008

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Montgomery County, Md.: Any word on the congressional primary is MD-1 (Gilchrest) or MD-4 (Wynn)?

Marc Fisher: With only 10 percent counted, Donna Edwards is up over Al Wynn, but it's very early.

Posted 10:09 p.m., 2.12.2008

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Silver Spring, Md.: Three school districts already have two hour delays!

Marc Fisher: It's wicked out there, but temps are supposed to rise overnight, so that does seem a bit of an overreaction.

Posted 10:10 p.m., 2.12.2008

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Maryland: Marc, I'm a registered Republican but I have to say I'm jealous that I could not vote today for my candidate -- Obama! I heard on the news this a.m. that there is a name for me...Obama-kin! Love it! And yes, when the poll worker asked me to verify my party, I WHISPERED! Bummer!

Marc Fisher: At the rally in College Park Monday, Obama reached out to Republicans and used that exact term for his GOP supporters.

Posted 10:10 p.m., 2.12.2008

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Marc Fisher: That kicks things in the head for tonight. Come on back for an hour of discussion on a special edition of Potomac Confidential Wednesday at 1 p.m. And thanks for staying up with us tonight.

Posted 10:11 p.m., 2.12.2008

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