By Pamela Gentry, Senior Political Producer

SAN ANTONIO, TEXAS (Posted March 5, 2008) – Sen. Hillary Clinton bested her top rival Sen. Barack Obama with wins in three of the four state contests.  The New York senator won in Rhode Island, Ohio and Texas.  Obama’s only primary win was in Vermont.

How did she do it?  Clinton was able to secure the White, Latino and senior citizen vote in Texas; in Ohio she won the working class folks concerned about jobs and the economy.  Clinton needed a strong showing to stay viable; winning these two large states does just that.

Obama did well among African- American voters, young folks and the well educated.  But he didn’t win over enough Latino voters in Texas or older voters in Ohio.  Clinton bested him by getting more late deciders in both states.   

Clinton told her supporters in Columbus, Ohio, “For everyone here in Ohio and across America who’s been ever been counted out but refused to be knocked out, for everyone who has stumbled but stood right back up, and for everyone who works hard and never gives up — this one is for you.  You know what they say,” she said. “As Ohio goes, so goes the nation. Well, this nation’s coming back and so is this campaign.”

Obama congratulated Clinton on her victories, but played down her wins, saying they didn’t net her more delegates, and remains ahead in the race for pledged delegates. Obama decided to direct his remarks toward the future Republican challenger, Arizona Sen. John McCain.  McCain secured enough delegates Tuesday to win the Republican nomination.

 “Because John McCain may claim long history of straight talk and independent-thinking, and I respect that.  But in this campaign, he’s fallen in line behind the very same policies that have ill-served America.  He has seen where George Bush has taken our country, and he promises to keep us on the very same course,” Obama said.

Cherri McCormick, an African American from San Antonio, is a tax collector for the city and is still optimistic Obama can win the nomination.  “It’s a pretty close race, but he’s got fresh ideas, he’s smart and intelligent,” she said.  

Now the Obama campaign will have to re-tool and decide how t0 rebound from Tuesday night’s  set backs.  The Clinton camp turned up the heat on the freshman senator and it worked.  That barrage of attacks may have been enough to influence those voters deciding in the last 48 hours.

African-American lawmaker, Rep. Al Green, (D-Tex) told me, “It’s not over yet, he  [Obama] knew it would be close; but at the end of the day he’ll have the same delegate lead.”  Green’s district near Houston delivered for  Obama. 

The Clinton camp feels the momentum turning their way.  While Obama leads the delegate count with an estimated 1,451 delegates and Clinton has an estimated 1365, the nominees will need 2024 to secure the nomination.

One things for sure, the second “Super Tuesday” didn’t deliver an inevitable Democratic nominee.