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The Morning Grind / DayAhead |
Illinois Senate primaries overshadow presidential race
By John Mercurio
CNN Political Unit
WASHINGTON (CNN) -- Key Senate primaries take place Tuesday for both parties in a Midwestern state that Sen. John Kerry must win in order to beat President Bush.
Illinois, one of the few bright spots in a bleak year for Senate Democrats, will be closely watched this fall, even after rumors of divorce scandals and admissions of cocaine abuse leave the campaign trail.
In part, that's because Barack Obama is well-poised to win the Democratic nod, which would bring him one step closer to becoming the third African-American ever elected to the Senate. New polls show Obama, a state senator, surged into first place after Democratic front-runner Blair Hull's bid collapsed under the weight of spousal abuse allegations.
Obama is likely to face Republican Jack Ryan, a wealthy investment banker, this fall.
The Illinois Senate primaries provide by far the most suspense in Tuesday's vote. It's a far cry from the giddy days of Iowa caucuses, but you have to learn to let go.
With the Illinois presidential primary anticipated to give him enough delegates to clinch the Democratic nod, Kerry heads to Charleston, West Virginia, for a 1,000-person rally. (CNN and other media outlets declared that Kerry had secured enough delegates for the 2004 Democratic nod last week, citing commitments from superdelegates. But Camp Kerry is waiting until Tuesday night to do so, saying superdelegates are less reliable.)
"It's the first step on the road to the White House," Kerry spokeswoman Stephanie Cutter said. "It's the state that's going to get us over the delegate hurdle. Super-delegates aren't concrete. This is based on electoral delegates. We'll have balloons, confetti, mylar, everything."
Kerry will be joined by crew mates who served with him in Vietnam, including Jim Rassmann, a Green Beret who credits the senator with saving his life during combat.
For his part, Bush is set to meet Tuesday morning with Dutch Prime Minister Jan Peter Balkenende, a key ally in the war against Iraq, and he participates in a conversation on health access at the U.S. Chamber of Commerce.
