Strange, but true!

By Jennifer J. Foster

CNN has called North Carolina for Barack Obama, but its raw vote tally shows Clinton with a 20 percentage point lead.

Strange, isn’t it? That shows you how much the networks rely on their exit polling.

FYI, the current tally is Obama, 870; Clinton, 1,323.

Black vs. white votes in North Carolina

By Jennifer J. Foster

For all the sound and fury about the black vote in North Carolina—and Obama won 91 percent of it to Clinton’s 6 percent—substantial numbers of white voters supported him, as well, the Rev. Wright controversy notwithstanding.

Bill Schneider points out that because the black vote made up about 36 percent of turnout, Obama’s victory wouldn’t have been possible without a good chunk of white support.

A black candidate against a female candidate: Whom to support?? The pundits are abuzz about the split in the Democratic Party among these two demographics.

Obama wins NC

By Jennifer J. Foster

It’s over in North Carolina, and the polls have been closed about a minute.

This bolsters Obama’s argument that he is like a Timex: He can take a lickin’ and keep on tickin’.

It’ll be interesting to see what the final spread is in the Tarheel State. Because of the number of delegates at stake, Hillary can’t afford to lose by double digits.

To that point, Jeffrey Toobin says that because of the number of delegates up for grabs in NC, even if she wins in Indiana, Hillary is going to be deeper in the hole at the end of the night than she was when it started.

Top five best pundits

By Jennifer J. Foster

There are positives and negatives to listening to election results on cable news. You make tradeoffs, grudgingly accepting the presence of the annoying, insulting blabbermouths and ignoring their remarks while waiting on the smart people to get another turn.

Here are my personal top five:

Gloria Borger: Brilliant and flawless, her background as a journalist lends incredible perspective to her political analysis. I love listening to her.
James Carville: He is known as The James. What more can I say?
Donna Brazile: A former Clinton Administration official,she’s a no-nonsense, bottom-line pundit who makes no bones with her analysis. She cuts through the mess and won’t hesitate to call a fellow pundit when the you-know-what gets too deep—which is often, especially when the Worst 5 are around.
Jamal Simmons: A spokesman for Barack Obama, his unflappability is his best quality. No matter what, you can’t upset Jamal. He is an eloquent professional and the best among the presidential candidates’ emissaries.
Kirsten Powers: She’s a combination of Donna Brazile and Jamal Simmons. Intelligent, assertive and well spoken, she’s one of the best pundits the Democrats have.

Honorable mention: John King. Incoming election results and all the spin can blur the mind of even the keenest political armchair quarterback. The fog is cleared when the words are translated into pictures. Enter King and the Magic Wall. He engages the visual learners among us and delivers the news on a platform anyone can understand. That’s key during an election that has drawn record numbers of people—including plenty of political newbies—not only to the polls, but also to the intrigue of elections.

In a few minutes, the top five pundits to mute when you see their mugs.

The bitterness factor

By Jennifer J. Foster

CNN’s exit poll returned interesting numbers on what pundits are calling “the bitterness factor.“

While 70 percent of Obama votes would support Clinton if she was the nominee, only 48 percent of Clinton voters said they would support Obama if he was the nominee.

More than three out of 10 Clinton voters say they would be more likely to support McCain in November than Obama.

CNN’s best pundit, Gloria Borger, noted how early in the process, Democratic voters indicated general satisfaction with all of their choices. These numbers indicate a “hardening in these camps” that “does not portend well for the general election.“ To keep the nomination contest from blowing a wide hole in Democrats’ chances to beat McCain in November, the nomination has to be resolved in a way that preserves a sense of fairness among the losers; otherwise, supporters of the losing candidate will likely feel alienated at best and angry at worst. They could stay home for the general or vote for McCain out of spite.

Jeffrey Toobin discounts the poll, noting that a similar feeling was reflected in 2000 between George W. Bush and John McCain. “She’s behind,“ Toobin said. “So it’s no surprise that (her supporters) are irritated and grouchy.“

One other interesting note from the exit poll: Clinton’s take of the African-American vote is down to 8 percent in Indiana, and 6 percent in North Carolina. This is stunning for a woman who is married to the man who was once called “the first black president of the United States.“

Still awaiting results from South Bend.