Super Tuesday Profile
This article is related to a current event
Super Tuesday (2008). Information may change rapidly as the event progresses.
This article is about the primary day. For the ESPN program, see Super Tuesday (TV series).
Twenty-four states held caucuses or primary elections on Super Tuesday, 2008. Blue denotes Democratic-only caucuses (3), Red illustrates Republican-only contests (2), and Purple represents states holding elections for both parties (19). Notes: American Samoa (not shown) is Democratic only.
In the United States, Super Tuesday generally refers to the Tuesday in early February or March of a presidential election year when the greatest number of states hold primary elections to select delegates to national conventions at which each party's presidential candidates are officially nominated. More delegates can be won on Super Tuesday than on any other single day of the primary calendar, and accordingly, candidates seeking the presidency traditionally must do well on this day to secure their party's nomination. In 2008, Super Tuesday was February 5; 24 states held primaries or caucuses on this date, with 52% of all pledged Democratic Party delegates and 41% of the total Republican Party delegates at stake.
Contents
1 History
1.1 Origins and significance 1.2 Increased participation 1.3 2004 1.4 2008
1.4.1 Democrats 1.4.2 Republicans
2 References
History
Origins and significance The phrase "Super Tuesday" has been used to refer to presidential primary elections since at least 1984 The phrase "Super Tuesday" was next used to describe the primary elections that took place on March 8, 1988, in the Southern states of Texas, Florida, Tennessee, Louisiana, Oklahoma, Mississippi, Kentucky, Alabama, and Georgia leading up to the 1988 election in November. Southern Democrats came up with the idea of a regional primary in an effort to nominate a moderate candidate who would more closely represent their interests. (Their plan ultimately did not succeed as Jesse Jackson, Al Gore, and Michael Dukakis split the Super Tuesday primaries, and Dukakis was subsequently nominated.) Since then, the particular states holding primaries on Super Tuesday have varied from year to year. Subsequent "Super Tuesdays" have taken place on March 10, 1992; March 12, 1996; March 7, 2000; and March 2, 2004. In 2000, 16 states held primaries on Super Tuesday, the largest presidential primary election day in U.S. history. Since Super Tuesday primaries are held in a large number of states from geographically and socially diverse regions of the country, Super Tuesday typically represents a Presidential candidate's first test of national electability. Convincing wins in Super Tuesday primaries have usually propelled candidates to their party's nomination. In 1992, after losing earlier primaries, Democrat Bill Clinton emerged as a candidate "back from the dead" when he convincingly won a number of Southern primaries on Super Tuesday. Clinton ultimately went on to win the Democratic nomination and the presidency. In 1996, Republican Bob Dole's Super Tuesday sweep sealed his bid for the Republican nomination. In 2000, approximately 81% of Democratic delegates and 18% of Republican delegates needed to secure nomination were up for grabs on Super Tuesday. That year, Democrat Al Gore and Republican George W. Bush cemented their nomination bids with Super Tuesday victories, and both went on to win their parties' nominations.
Increased participation To increase importance of their votes, many states have moved up their primaries to February 5, 2008. This new, earlier cohort of primaries and caucuses has thus come to be referred to as "Super Tuesday." (By way of denoting its political magnitude, some pundits have variously dubbed it "Giga Tuesday," "Mega Giga Tuesday," "Tsunami Tuesday" or even "Super Duper Tuesday." "Super Tuesday" is, however, the nominal term and the one most widely used.)
Seven states held caucuses or primary elections on Mini-Tuesday in 2004. Blue denotes Democratic-only contests (4) and Purple represents states that held elections for both parties (3).
2004
Main article: Mini-Tuesday
In 2004, several states moved their presidential contests up to February 3, 2004 in order to increase the relative importance of their election results. Ultimately five states held primaries and two held caucuses on this, a date eventually christened Mini-Tuesday or, alternatively, Super Tuesday I by pundits, with the traditional March Super Tuesday date christened Super Tuesday II, or just simply "Super Tuesday." Arguably, the Roman numeraled names are most consistent with how Super Tuesdays were first christened in 1984, when there were in fact three Super Tuesdays.
2008
Main article: Super Tuesday (2008)
In the spring of 2007, 24 states with over half the delegates to the national conventions moved to change their primary dates to February 5, 2008, creating the largest "Super Tuesday" to date. Newswriters and political pundits have noted that this will dwarf the Super Tuesday primaries in previous cycles, creating a "Tsunami Tuesday," among other superlatives.
Democrats
Hillary Clinton Barack Obama
Number of states won on Super Tuesday 8 13
Number of delegates won on Super Tuesday 584 563
Republicans
John McCain Mitt Romney Mike Huckabee Ron Paul
Number of states won on Super Tuesday 9 7 5 0
Number of delegates won on Super Tuesday 511 176 147 10
References
^ www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/01/14/AR2008011402926_pf.html.
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United States presidential primaries
Opinion polls Democratic Party: 2008 · Republican Party: 2008
Fund raising 2008
Debates Democratic Party: 2008 · Republican Party: 2008
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Reforms California Democratic Party v. Jones · Graduated Random Presidential Primary System · Delaware Plan · Rotating Regional Primary System · Interregional Primary Plan · National Primary
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Top 5 Search Results
Super Tuesday - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia For the ESPN program, see Super Tuesday (TV series). Twenty-four states held caucuses or primary elections on Super Tuesday, 2008. ...
Super Tuesday, 2008 - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia a b c "California primary move creates Super-duper Tuesday". CNN (2007-03-15) ... Double-Tongued Dictionary entry for Super-Duper Tuesday". Retrieved on 2008-01-28. ...
Election Center 2008 - Election Results & Politics News from CNN.com Full and ongoing coverage of the 2008 presidential election. View election results by political party, candidate, state, or date.
A super guide for Super Tuesday - CNN.com Voters in 24 states go to the polls on Tuesday, also known as Super Tuesday, and the outcome could whittle down the nominees for both parties.
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