The U.S. Republican presidential race will take a clearer shape as Florida primary, the first battle that all major candidates play in, comes to the end on Tuesday.
The following are some key facts about the state and its primary:
* As of 2006, Florida's population was about 18 million, the 4th biggest, with the whites account for 78 percent, the blacks 14.6 percent and Hispanic 16.8 percent.
* Much of the state of Florida is situated on a peninsula between the Gulf of Mexico, the Atlantic Ocean and the Straits of Florida with extensive coastline, leaving it vulnerable to illegal immigrants.
* Florida is home to many immigrants, especially New York retirees, who prefer New York Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton and former New York Mayor Rudy Guiliani as Democratic and Republican candidates, respectively.
* Although traditionally as a Democratic state, Florida has witnessed Republican party winning over many conservative Democrats. This tendency, combined with inflow of Republicans and explosive population growth as well as rising of illegal immigration issue, has given Florida a Republican edge in practice.
* Florida has long played a key role in the general election, which has been proved by the 2000 presidential election where George W. Bush and Al Gore competed. Republicans have not won the White House without Florida since 1924.
* Due to move forward with the primary date before Feb. 5, Florida Democratic and Republican party were both punished by their national committee, respectively. Democrats lost all of their 210 delegates to the nomination convention, leaving the state less important to Democratic candidates, while Republican retained half of their 114 delegates and any candidate who wins the primary can take away all of them.
* According to the latest poll in Florida, Clinton leads Democrats at 50 percent, followed by Illinois Senator Barack Obamaat 26 percent. On the Republican side, Arizona Senator John McCain and former Massachusetts governor Mitt Romney were caught in a tie with 29 percent and 28 percent, respectively, followed by Guiliani at 15 percent.
Source: Xinhua
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