Obama takes caucuses by storm
Snow fails to dissuade Democrats from thronging to take part in record numbers

By JONATHAN E. KAPLAN. Washington D.C. Correspondent February 11, 2008

John Ewing/Staff Photographer
John Ewing/Staff Photographer
Democratic and independent voters turned out in large numbers Sunday at polls around the state to vote in the Democratic caucuses. This line of people waiting to participate was a small fraction of the voters at Portland High School. The line of people waiting to get in stretched three blocks at one point.
John Ewing/Staff Photographer
John Ewing/Staff Photographer
A large turnout of Democratic and independent voters waiting to register fills the hallways at Portland High School during the state’s Democratic caucuses on Sunday.
John Ewing/Staff Photographer
John Ewing/Staff Photographer
Dory Anna Waman, right, a Maine Democratic Party official, collects ballots Sunday from voters at the Democratic caucus at Portland High School.
John Ewing/Staff Photographer
John Ewing/Staff Photographer
Democratic voters in Cape Elizabeth line up to register Sunday afternoon at Cape Elizabeth High School during the state’s Democratic presidential caucuses. Bad weather put the Cape Elizabeth event an hour behind schedule



Sen. Barack Obama won Maine's Democratic caucuses Sunday as massive numbers of voters braved inclement weather.

The Illinois Democrat beat Sen. Hillary Clinton, D-N.Y., by a margin of 59 percent to 40 percent with 95 percent of precincts reporting, giving Obama 15 of Maine's 24 pledged delegates who will be bound to vote for him at the party's national convention.

More than 46,000 voters, including 4,000 who cast absentee ballots, participated in the caucuses, easily breaking the record of 17,000 from 2004.

"We exceeded that in a way none of us could have foreseen," said Arden Manning, executive director of Maine's Democratic Party. "Democrats really want something different, and they want something new. That's why they attended in such high numbers."

Obama and Clinton vigorously campaigned to win Maine, stumping in the state Saturday and sending in their biggest supporters.

Both camps squabbled about whether to debate, and Obama hammered Clinton for her votes on coastal drilling and her plan to provide home oil heating subsidies to poor households.

It was an "upset" victory, said Obama campaign manager David Plouffe, adding that internal polling showed Clinton in the lead days before the caucus.

Obama swept the four states -- and the Virgin Islands -- that held primaries and caucuses this weekend. From Maine, the candidates headed to campaign in Washington, D.C., Virginia and Maryland, which will hold primaries Tuesday.

In the overall race to reach the 2,025 delegates, Clinton leads Obama 1,135 to 1,106 delegates, including the so-called superdelegates, who are not bound to vote for a specific candidate, according to The Associated Press.

The record voter turnout in Maine plus the bad weather led to long lines and confusion at many caucus sites about how a caucus works.

The caucus at Cape Elizabeth High School started an hour behind schedule. Caucusgoers waited in two lines snaking out the door even as a wet snow started to fall shortly after 1 p.m.

Portland High School was mobbed with voters three hours before the caucus was scheduled to begin. A line of people stretched from inside the building to outside in the falling snow, with the end of the line falling on Congress Street -- three blocks from the school's Cumberland Avenue entrance.

Inside, the school's athletic teams held bake sales as some voters clamored for seats inside the gymnasium and many others figured out where to register.

Sive Neilan, a Democratic Party caucus organizer, said the local party couldn't hold the caucus at bigger venues -- the Cumberland County Civic Center or the Portland Exposition Building, for example -- because organizers needed several rooms to hold separate precinct-by-precinct votes.

The high school classrooms provided an easy way to cordon off voters, Neilan said. "This is as good as we get," she said in the crowded hallway.

Neilan said turnout at the 2004 caucus was around 2,400. About 4,000 attended Sunday's caucus. Asked why party officials were unprepared for the surge, given the larger-than-usual turnout in many other states, she said the party trained about 30 registrars for the caucus -- more than double the number used in 2004.

While they expected more voters than usual Sunday, the massive turnout was a surprise, Neilan said.

"This is the Obama tsunami, and we're getting hit by it," she said.

Once inside, voters navigated a maze of lines to check in for the event. Some complained about the 60- to 90-minute wait; others saw it as evidence of a landmark election year.

Many appeared to take the delays and weather in stride.

"I am overwhelmed. It is such a good sign for our party," Maine House Speaker Glenn Cummings said. "The caucuses are not prepared for this level of capacity. It does make a case for primaries or absentee balloting."

"This is great, great that this many people are here," said Karen Westburg, a retired state employee. "I'm cold. I'm wet. But I'm still glad I'm here."

Many Democrats were patient through the bad weather and long waits to accomplish a singular goal: electing a Democrat in November.

"I'm sick of (President) Bush," said Erica Gilbert, 17, of Portland, who waited outside in the snow with friend Hillary Orr, 18, a senior at Portland High.

The caucus at Cape Elizabeth High drew 682 voters, more than doubling its turnout from 2004. Obama easily won, 556-217. Ninety-four Democrats voted by absentee ballot.

Obama's supporters, including 17-year-olds who will turn 18 before Election Day, Nov. 4, overwhelmed Clinton's backers.

"I've never had any experience in politics. Normally I don't care," said Tommy Houge, a 17-year-old senior. "If it wasn't for him, I would not be coming today."

Others were just as inspired by Obama, but a bit more strategically.

"I'm voting for Obama because he can beat McCain," said Haley Cushing, a 17-year-old senior at Cape Elizabeth High, referring to Arizona Sen. John McCain, the likely Republican nominee.

-- Staff Writer Elbert Aull contributed to this story.

Washington D.C. Correspondent Jonathan E. Kaplan can be contacted at (202) 488-1119 or at:

jkaplan@pressherald.com

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