Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: WEDNESDAY, March 11, 1992 TAG: 9203110323
SECTION: NATIONAL/INTERNATIONAL PAGE: A-1 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: Associated Press
DATELINE: LENGTH: Medium
President Bush closed in for an eight-state Republican shutout of Patrick Buchanan.
On the busiest night of the primary season, Bush was winning from Florida to Texas. He faced a dwindling protest vote, picking up more than 65 percent of the vote in each state.
Clinton far outdistanced Tsongas and Jerry Brown in the Democratic delegate competition, positioning himself comfortably as the campaign headed north. He was piling up margins of 65 percent or more in most Southern states, including Texas, Tennessee, Oklahoma and Mississippi.
Clinton had wanted Southern margins so lopsided that Tsongas would be limping as the primary calendar turned to Illinois and Michigan.
Bush led for more than 90 percent of the delegates at stake and said "we are winners tonight." Senior congressional Republicans were suggesting it now was time for Buchanan to drop his conservative challenge and allow the party to unify for the fall campaign.
Buchanan did best in Florida, where he was in the 30 percent range.
Florida had been the bitter battleground for Clinton and Tsongas, and even there the Arkansas governor had about 50 percent of the vote in a three-way race.
Tsongas won at home in Massachusetts and was running well in next-door Rhode Island. He said he was ready for the next round of primaries.
But Tsongas was pushed to the brink by Clinton's smashing showing. He must recover next Tuesday to revitalize his candidacy. Clinton's march through Dixie redeemed the Super Tuesday strategy developed by Democratic Party figures who wanted early Southern primaries to propel a moderate candidate. If he were to win in the industrial North, Clinton's claim on the nomination would seem secure.
The symbolism of Super Tuesday primary night couldn't have been more striking: Clinton attending a victory rally in Illinois; Tsongas at home in New England.
SUPER TUESDAY\ PARTIAL RESULTS
\ Florida: (92 percent of precincts reporting) Clinton, 51 percent; Tsongas, 34; Brown, 12. Bush, 69 percent, Buchanan, 31.
\ Texas: (65 percent of precincts) Clinton, 66; Tsongas, 18; Brown 7. Bush, 70; Buchanan, 24; David Duke, 3.
\ Mississippi: (92 percent) Clinton, 74; Tsongas, 8; Brown, 10. Bush, 72; Buchanan, 17; Duke, 11.
\ Tennessee: (99 percent) Clinton, 67; Tsongas, 19, Brown, 8. Bush, 73, Buchanan, 22, Duke, 3.
Keywords:
POLITICS
by CNB