McCain wins Florida Republican primary

MIAMI -- Sen. John McCain won a breakthrough triumph in the Florida primary Tuesday night, gaining the upper hand in the battle for the Republican presidential nomination ahead of next week's contests across 21 states and lining up a quick endorsement from soon-to-be dropout Rudy Giuliani.

"It shows one thing. I'm the conservative leader who can unite the party," McCain said after easing past former Massachusetts governor Mitt Romney in a hard-fought contest.

"It's a very significant boost, but I think we've got a tough week ahead and a lot of states to come," he said.

Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton was the Democratic winner in a primary held in defiance of national rules. No Democratic delegates were available in the Florida primary.

The victory was worth 57 national convention delegates for McCain, a winner-take-all haul that catapulted him ahead of Romney for the overall delegate lead.

Returns from 95 percent of the state's precincts showed McCain, the Arizona senator, with 36 percent of the vote and Romney, the former governor of Massachusetts, with 31 percent.

Giuliani ran third, his best showing of the campaign but not nearly good enough for the one-time front-runner who decided to make his last stand in a state that is home to tens of thousands of transplanted New Yorkers.

In remarks to supporters in Orlando, the former New York mayor referred to his candidacy repeatedly in the past tense -- as though it were over. "We'll stay involved and together we'll make sure that we'll do everything we can to hand our nation off to the next generation better than it was before," he said.

Former Arkansas governor Mike Huckabee trailed in fourth, but told supporters he would campaign on. Texas Rep. Ron Paul was fifth, and last.

Romney to stay in race

Romney, who has spent millions of dollars of his personal fortune to run for the White House, also vowed to stay in the race.

"At a time like this, America needs a president in the White House who has actually had a job in the real economy," he told supporters in St. Petersburg.

The victory was another step in one of the most remarkable political comebacks of recent times. McCain entered the race the front-runner, then found his campaign unraveling last summer as his stands in favor of the Iraq War and a controversial immigration bill proved unpopular.

The war gradually became less of a concern after President Bush's decision to increase troop deployments began to produce results. McCain also sought to readjust his position on immigration.

By the time of the New Hampshire primary, he was primed for victory, and got it. He won the South Carolina primary last week, taking first place in the state that had snuffed out his presidential hopes in 2000.

McCain's victory was his first-ever primary win in a state that allowed only Republicans to vote. His previous triumphs, in New Hampshire and South Carolina this year, and in two states in 2000 came in elections open to independents. He campaigned with the support of the state's two top Republican elected officials, Gov. Charlie Crist and Sen. Mel Martinez.

Symbolic win for Clinton

Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton won the Democratic race, an event that drew no campaigning by any of the contenders -- and awarded no delegates to the winner.

The Democratic primary was controversial by its very existence, an act of defiance against national party officials who wanted it held later in the year.

Even so, Clinton sought to emphasize her performance in the state, holding a rally as the polls were closing.

She challenged Barack Obama to agree to seat the delegates on the basis of the night's vote, but he demurred, saying he would abide by an agreement all Democratic candidates had made months ago.

"Those decisions will be made after the nomination, not before," Obama told reporters Tuesday on a plane from Washington to Kansas. "Obviously, I care a lot about the people in Michigan and a lot about the people in Florida. And I want their votes in the general election. We'll be actively campaigning for them."