From The Washington Post:
Sen. John McCain scored victories in some of the largest Super Tuesday states yesterday, but faced a tight contest in delegate-rich California and failed to knock his two main opponents out of the race as he tried to lock up the Republican presidential nomination.
As millions of Republicans went to the polls in 21 states, the senator from Arizona triumphed in the Northeast, but former Arkansas governor Mike Huckabee secured key victories in the South and former Massachusetts governor Mitt Romney was battling him in the West. Huckabee and Romney vowed last night to stay in the contest, complicating McCain’s hopes of rallying the party behind his candidacy.
The multiple-front clash represented a virtual national primary as Republicans voted to choose a standard-bearer to succeed President Bush, with more states voting at once than in any other GOP nomination battle. With victories in big winner-take-all states, McCain racked up hundreds of delegates to the Republican National Convention. But in other states, delegates will be awarded proportionately. A GOP candidate needs 1,191 delegates to clinch the nomination.