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Holiday break is over for 2008 hopefuls |
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Dec 26, 2007 - After a pause for Christmas, presidential contenders resume their blitz across Iowa today, scraping and scuffling in contests that have grown tighter and more unpredictable as the first balloting of 2008 nears. On the Democratic side, three candidates -- Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton of New York, Sen. Barack Obama of Illinois and John Edwards, former senator from North Carolina -- are running neck-and-neck-and-neck, with the rest of the field fighting to squeeze past one of them to finish third. Among Republicans, former governors Mike Huckabee of Arkansas and Mitt Romney of Massachusetts are battling for first place, while the race for third is a toss-up among several contenders. The closeness of the caucus contests increases the import of these final days -- and of any verbal misstep, breakthrough TV ads or crystallizing moment on the campaign trail. Iowans will vote Jan. 3. "We've never had anything like this," said David Nagle, a former congressman and past chairman of the Iowa Democratic Party, who has been tracking the caucuses since they gained national attention in 1972. "If you can find a three-headed coin, flip it. That's about the best projection I can give you." By Mark Z Barabak and Seema Mehta, LA Times
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