Clinton won the Pennsylvania primaries with 55 percent of the vote, but Obama still leads in the overall delegate count.

Hillary, Obama battle it out in Pennsylvania
Tracy Harriger | 4/24/08 | World News

Democratic senators and presidential candidates Hillary Rodham Clinton and Barack Obama have stayed their courses for the last six weeks, campaigning as much as possible in the state of Pennsylvania, which held its presidential primary on Tuesday, April 22.

This final large state primary was a must-win for Clinton in the tight race against rival Obama, and vote counts confirm that the former first lady has managed to edge out her opponent by a comfortable margin. She claimed 55 percent of the vote, while the Illinois senator gained the remaining 45 percent.

“Some counted me out and said to drop out," the congresswoman told her supporters. "But the American people don't quit. And they deserve a president who doesn't quit, either” (Associated Press).

The majority of the votes for Clinton came from blue-collar workers, women, and white males while voters for Obama were primarily black, from affluent sects of society, or recently self-proclaimed Democrats, according to an Associated Press exit poll. The two candidates rolled up their sleeves and made friends with the Pennsylvania working class by downing shots of whiskey and going bowling.

About half of the voters that showed up at the polls considered the economy to be the most crucial issue in this election, while about 25 percent thought that Iraq was most important. Those who were more concerned about the economy and health care tended to vote for Clinton while the constituency voting for Obama was more predominantly concerned about the war in Iraq.

This contest yielded yet another surprising win for Hillary Clinton. At least three previous times she has bounced back from tragic losses to win some very important primaries. Last winter, she won the state of New Hampshire after coming in third in the Iowa caucuses, and also, after losing 11 primaries straight, came back to win Ohio and Texas.

The New York Senator seemed very confident that she would be able to win over Pennsylvania voters, as was signaled by her scheduling a rally on the night of the election in Philadelphia. Obama, on the other hand, chose not to face the state he lost and flew to Evansville, Indiana where he began to gather voters together.

“Now it’s up to you Indiana,” he said. “We can calculate and poll-test our positions and tell everyone exactly what they want to hear, or we can be the party that doesn't just focus on how to win, but why we should” (AP).

Much to the joy of Republicans, campaigning has become increasingly personal among the Democratic candidates. Instead of ideologies being debated, Clinton and Obama are now making accusations about their opponents using lobbyist’s money for their political gain.

The presidential hopefuls have also had to deal with making apologies for statements that they have made earlier in their campaigns – Obama, his comment about small town Americans clinging to guns and religions to protect themselves from hardships, and Clinton, her lying about being under sniper fire in Bosnia.

Despite Hillary’s win, Barack Obama still leads in the overall delegate count – 1694.5 votes versus her 1561.5. This count includes the superdelegate vote.

The final Democratic primaries will take place in North Carolina, Indiana, Oregon, Kentucky, West Virginia, Montana, and South Dakota.