In a low turn out, former Massachusetts Governor Mitt Romney final got his "gold" after winning the Michigan Republican Primary with 39% of the vote. Online sportsbook BetUs.com had Mitt Romney as the 10 to 11 odds favorite in Michigan. Winning the Michigan Primary on his home turf was critical to boost Romney’s credibility as a potentially electable candidate. Romney already lost to John McCain in New Hampshire and a third "silver" would have sent him straight to Nevada. Now Romney can still focus on Nevada but score some momentum going into the South Carolina Primary for a few dates of campaigning.
“Tonight is a victory on optimism over Washington Pessimism,” stated Mitt Romney. “We are celebrating here in Michigan….Washington is broken and we are going to fix it.”
Romney is the fix it guy selling a message of anti-Washington which is a clear attack on John McCain. The Arizona Senator was very conciliatory in defeat. McCain scored a second with 30% of the votes in the Michigan Republican Primary.
“We are not afraid of a fight,” stated McCain. “We are on to South Carolina.”
John McCain will be in for a battle and must perform strong in the South Carolina Primary in order to keep hope in his 2008 Presidential bid alive. Oddsmakers at BetUs.com has John McCain as the favorite with 7 to 5 odds to win the 2008 Republican Presidential Nominee with 7 to 5 odds.
Former Arkansas Governor Mike Huckabee scored third with 16% of the votes in the Michigan Republican Primary. Huckabee is the current favorite to win the Republican South Carolina Primary with 1 to 4 odds. Huckabee stated that the country should use "Gods words as law" and "amend the Constitution so its in God's standards" while campaigning for the Michigan Republican Primary in Warren. While this did not help him with Michigan voters, it will help him in the eyes of some voters in the deep south including South Carolina.
"I'm going to stick to the things that make it critical for me to be president of the United States," Mike Huckabee told reporters at an airport news conference. "I have deep convictions about who goes and who doesn't, but as far as who makes that decision, it isn't me, it's God."
Ron Paul came in fourth with 6% of the votes in Michigan beating out Fred Thompson with 4% and Rudy Giuliani with 3%. Ron Paul is listed at 50 to 1 odds to become the President of the United States , shorter odds than Fred Thompson who is listed at BetUs.com with 80 to 1 odds. All of the candidates in the Republican Party could theoretically have one win each going into Super Tuesday. This is the essence of Rudy Giuliani’s "National" strategy with centers on surfing into Tsunami Tuesday surging from a victory in delegate rich Florida. Time will tell if Rudy Giuliani’s roll of the dice on Florida pays off.
NBC Exit Polls from the Michigan Primary say that 51% of Republicans say the Economy is "Not Good" and 17% saying its "Poor". Michigan's ailing auto industry and the country's worst unemployment rate are the reasons that about two-thirds of the state said the nation's economy is in bad shape. No delegates for Democratic Presidential Candidates in the Michigan Democratic Primary because of a ongoing dispute between state Party representatives and the Democratic National Committee.
BetUs.com has posted political betting odds on which political party will win the 2008 Presidential Election:
Democrats: 1/2
Republicans: 8/5
Any Other Party: 100/1
