Hillary Clinton’s hopes for the Democratic nomination in the race for the US Presidency have received a shot in the arm following her victories in the Ohio, Rhode Island and Texas primaries. While her rival Barack Obama has won Vermont, Hillary’s wins are significant because she has managed to break his winning streak in recent weeks. Economic issues dominated the debate in the four states that went to the primaries this week. Ohio has picked the winning presidential nominee in every contest in recent history. The victory in Ohio is a morale boost to Hillary and her campaign team and will draw encouragement from it as they prepare for tough duels that lie ahead. Hillary has won 16 states and 1,391 delegates so far. She trails marginally behind Obama who has 24 states and 1,447 delegates in his pocket.

The string of victories Obama achieved earlier did indicate that his campaign had built up an unstoppable momentum. But the results from the latest primaries show that the race for the Democratic nomination is still open and could go either way. Hillary’s latest wins will give her a psychological edge and convince her to soldier on. The next big stop is Pennsylvania, often described as Clinton country. It looks like that Hillary and Obama are heading for a photo finish. The fight between Hillary and Obama in recent weeks has turned increasingly ugly with both making personal attacks on each other. This is a pity as this will only weaken the Democrat bid for the presidency.

The picture in the Republican camp is now clear. John McCain has sealed the Republican nomination having got more than the 1,191 delegates he needed to win the nomination. His closest rival, Mike Huckabee has dropped out of the race. With the Republican nomination now decided, McCain has the advantage of time and organisation for his presidential campaign. He can focus now on winning the White House. Meanwhile, the Democrat hopefuls are still slugging it out. The Democrats might find that their advantage of having two fine candidates for the presidency will be lost if the tough contest for the nomination goes into August. That will leave them with little time to close ranks and fight the Republican challenge.