Clinton, McCain finish strong in Steuben
By ROB PRICE THE COURIER-ADVOCATE

BATH - Sen. HIllary Clinton and Sen. John McCain won the hearts and minds of Steuben County voters in last week's New York primary election.

Clinton won 3,005 votes in the Democratic primary, more than double the 1,417 votes cast for Sen. Barack Obama, according to unofficials results at the Steuben County Board of Elections.

McCain also dominated the Republican primary, winning 3,781 votes to former Massachusetss Gov. Mitt Romney's 2,100. Former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee garnered 1,487 votes; Sen. Ron Paul, 572, and Former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani, 180.

The number of votes cast for Giuliani appeared surprisingly low; however, Steuben County Republican Chairman Bill Hatch said the GOP Committee had made an effort to notify county Republicans Giuliani had officially dropped out of the race and endorsed McCain.

"Giuliani was the hometown boy," said Hatch, a former Giuliani supporter. "But once he pulled the plug, we decided to go with our second choice."

Meanwhile, Hornell Mayor Shawn Hogan, chairman of the Steuben county Democratic Committee, said he was "very pleased" with Clinton's strong showing against Obama.

"She hasn't been a stranger (to Steuben County)," said Hogan, who won his own election as a Clinton delegate to the Democratic Convention representing the 29th Congressional District. "She's been a frequent visitor."

Last week's Republican primary results in Steuben County mirrored results of New York state, where McCain rolled up 307,247 votes compared to Romney's 167,062, Huckabee's 64,965, and Paul's 38,482.

Clinton, however, finished with a higher percentage lead in the county than statewide, where she won 993,252 votes to Obama's 690,702.

The closer statewide finish leads in turn to a closer distribution of delegates pledged to either county. Unofficial results indicate Clinton gained 173 delegates in the New York primary compared to 149 to Obama.