Kerry Keeps Up His Winning Ways in 3 More States

Sen. John F. Kerry appeared well on his way to keeping his electoral victory streak alive Tuesday night, winning a solid majority in the Utah state primary and the Idaho caucuses and leading in early results from Hawaii.

Sen. John Edwards was headed to distant second-place finishes in Utah and Idaho and lagged badly in Hawaii -- giving no boost to his underdog bid to overtake Kerry as the candidates head into the balloting in 10 states Tuesday.

Edwards, of North Carolina, was winning less than one-third of the vote in both Utah and Idaho, and trailing far behind Kerry and Rep. Dennis J. Kucinich in Hawaii, where about half the caucuses had reported.

If Kerry held on to win in all three states, as seemed likely, it would mark his 16th, 17th and 18th triumphs in the 20 primary-season contests. Edwards has won only once -- in South Carolina, where he was born.

Democratic officials in Utah and Idaho -- Republican strongholds in general elections -- said they experienced high voter turnouts Tuesday. Those officials saw that as an indication of the enthusiasm for unseating President Bush in many parts of the country.

With 94% of the vote counted in Utah, Kerry led with 55%, while Edwards tallied 30% and Rep. Dennis J. Kucinich scored 7%. Howard Dean received 4%.

Dean, the former Vermont governor, gave up active campaigning last week, but told his supporters they could still vote for him in an effort to win convention delegates and influence the Democratic Party.

In Idaho, with all votes counted, Kerry had 55% of the vote to 22% for Edwards, 11% for Dean and 5% for Kucinich.

Edwards may have alienated some locals when he belatedly canceled an appearance at the party’s annual Frank Church dinner.

“That did not go over particularly well,” said Maria Weeg, the executive director of Idaho’s Democratic Party.

Kerry maintained more of a presence in the state, including a visit Monday by his wife, Teresa Heinz Kerry, to a Boise elementary school, and a recent concert by Carole King, a a supporter of the Massachusetts senator.

Kerry had a bit of a leg up even before Tuesday’s vote began, as four of Idaho’s five “super delegates” -- elected officials who will attend the July nominating convention in Boston -- pledged to vote for him. The 18 other delegates were subject to 40 county caucuses, which began in early evening.

In the partial returns from the Hawaii caucuses, Kerry was leading with 53%, while Kucinich had 23%, Edwards 13% and Dean 8%. Election officials were still awaiting results from the islands of Maui and Kauai.

None of the states voting Tuesday received the attention they craved, with just 61 delegates total at stake, compared with the 1,151 that will be on the line next Tuesday, when California, New York, Ohio, Georgia and six other states hold nominating contests.

Hawaii Democrats were casting their votes Tuesday at about 50 caucuses statewide, beginning about 7 p.m. local time. The state’s 20 convention delegates were not expected to be known until early today.

Local Democratic officials credited animosity toward Bush with pumping up registration by 500, but that still left a total of just 23,000 registered Democrats statewide.

In Utah, the Republican-dominated Legislature had no interest in paying for Tuesday’s vote, so the Democratic Party ran the primary.

Anyone eligible to vote could cast a ballot, as long as they signed a pledge not to vote in any Republican primary or caucus.

Utah Democrats billed the primary as their one chance to affect the presidential race this year, since Bush is expected to dominate the state’s vote in November.

The state will award 23 delegates to the Democratic convention.

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Primary, caucus results

Idaho (c)

Kerry 55%

Edwards 22%

Dean 11%

Sharpton 0%

Kucinich 5%

100% reporting

Utah (p)

Kerry 55%

Edwards 30%

Dean 4%

Sharpton 0%

Kucinich 7%

94% reporting

Source: Associated Press

Some figures do not total 100% because fringe candidates and some of those who left the race are not listed. (c) indicates caucus. (p) indicates primary. Results from Hawaii were not available at press time.

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Delegate count

Here is the breakdown of presidential preferences of delegates to the Democratic National Convention, including those selected Tuesday in Idaho and Utah. It includes choices by “super delegates,” those not picked through primaries or caucuses and who can change their minds. Results from Hawaii were not available at press time.

Needed to nominate: 2,162

Candidate Delegates

John F. Kerry: 644

John Edwards: 196

Howard Dean: 185

Al Sharpton: 16

Dennis J. Kucinich: 2

Source: Associated Press

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Showdown Before ‘Super Tuesday’

As a prelude to the 10 primaries and caucuses Tuesday, the Democratic presidential candidates will participate in a debate Thursday sponsored by the Los Angeles Times and CNN. The forum will be broadcast live on CNN, KTLA-TV Channel 5 and KCAL-TV Channel 9 from 6 to 7:30 p.m. PST