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Slate's Explanation For Obama's NH Victory

By wt

Why doesn't 8000 votes in NH get Hillary more delegates?

Democratic presidential candidates gain delegates in each state as long as they capture at least 15 percent of the votes, and they're awarded delegates in proportion to the amount of votes they receive in each district and statewide.

New Hampshire had 22 delegates up for grabs this week. Clinton, who received 39 percent of the vote, got 39 percent of the delegates. Obama, who won 37 percent of the vote, got 37 percent of the delegates. That rounds down to eight delegates each.

John Edwards, who just made the cutoff with 17 percent of the vote, received three delegates. This leaves three extra delegates, who are then allocated to the three candidates in turn.

So congratulations New Hampshire voters; you gave Hillary momentum going into Nevada and South Carolina. But don't think your votes actually contribute to her nomination in the fall at the convention.

Full post as published by Expressio Unius on January 09, 2008 (boomark / email).