Obama Wins Maine; Clinton Replaces Campaign Manager

Illinois Sen. Barack Obama defeated New York counterpart Hillary Rodham Clinton in Maine's democratic presidential caucuses Sunday, one day after he won contests in Louisiana, Nebraska and Washington state.

Clinton Sunday replaced her campaign manager, Patti Solis Doyle, with Maggie Williams, a longtime aide who served as the former first lady's White House chief of staff. Campaign aides said Solis Doyle decided to leave on her own and wasn't pressured to do so, according to an AP report. She will serve as a senior adviser to Clinton and travel with her occasionally, the report added.

In the Republican race, Mike Huckabee Saturday beat frontrunner John McCain in Kansas and Louisiana, while McCain was declared the victor in the Washington state caucuses. But on Sunday, Huckabee's campaign announced it would challenge the results in Washington.

Huckabee's campaign manager, Ed Rollins, said Luke Esser, chairman of Washington's Republican Party, called the race too quickly, according to the AP. Rollins said Huckabee was behind by only 242 votes when McCain was declared the winner, adding that another 1,500 votes appeared not to have been counted. Esser said, "If they can provide me with anything of substance to ask about, we'll be happy to inquire," according to the AP.

Despite his two victories Saturday, Huckabee, a former Arkansas governor, trails well behind McCain, the Arizona senator who has emerged as his party's likely nominee.

Although there was snowy weather in Maine, turnout was strong in the state's democratic caucuses. With 87% of precincts reporting, Obama won at least 13 of the state's 24 delegates, while Clinton won at least eight, according to the AP. Clinton still leads the race for the nomination, with 1,135 delegates, including superdelegates, while Obama has 1,106, the AP reported.

Candidates in both parties are now looking ahead to contests Tuesday in Maryland, Virginia and the District of Columbia.