Guam votes being counted . . .

[kevinbgoode]

Polls closed at 8 p.m. Guam time today. . .four popularly selected delegates and five superdelegates go to the Democratic Convention from Guam.

7:40 p.m. Guam - Guam's ABC-7 and the Pacific News Center continue to generate headlines for Guam on the U.S. mainland and elsewhere. Earlier today, Pacific News Center's Executive Producer Catherine Cruz Norton was featured on ABC-7's sister station in San Francisco, KGO-TV. Here is their report:

The spotlight is on next Tuesday's primaries in Indiana and North Carolina, but voters in Guam are actually having their say in a caucus right now.

Senators Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama are fiercely fighting for every delegate, and Guam has nine.

Although 6,000 miles from the mainland, the Pacific territory is getty plenty of attention from the candidates.

Four delegates are awarded by popular vote. Guam also has five superdelegates.

KGO-TV spoke to a journalist at the Pacific News Center as polls opened just a few hours ago.

"A lot of ads are being placed on TV and on radio. A lot of advertising and a great deal of activity from both camps, so we're certainly feeling that Guam is somehow important in the big scheme of things," said Catherine Cruz Norton, Executive Producer of Pacific News Center.

Norton said voter turnout today is triple the usual numbers.


KGUM is one local radio station DUers can listen to online at: http://www.k57.com

[TheDoorbellRang]

1. DCW had a blurb that Guam results wouldn't be available until noon EST

I still am baffled that US territories can participate in presidential primaries but not the general election. Very strange.

[terrell9584]

2. Not at all

Territories don't pay taxes. That's why they don't have the right to vote in federal elections, because they don't kick in a thing to the federal treasury. They still get the benefits of American military protection and access to government programs and they all have U.S. citizenship.

Puerto Rico should get statehood, the rest of them are just too small geographically and population wise to even consider that.

[TheDoorbellRang]

3. But then why can they vote in primaries?

I fear my knowledge of US territories is very bare bones, so any light you can shed is appreciated.

[terrell9584]

4. Because unless you live in a one party area

A primary is meaningless. It is just a nominating election, winning or losing it doesn't immediately give you the key to the office. Plus these states all have a significant amount of money and political parties with national affiliation, taking them out of the system would cause a lot of money to be lost (especially to the Democratic Party, which most territorial parties align to) and it might cause the public in those areas to agitate for seperation from the U.S., and we need most of those territories for strategic reasons

[TheDoorbellRang]

7. Interesting. Thanks for the info

[Rosa Luxemburg]

5. who is expected to win?

[Adelante]

6. It's been judged to go for Hillary nt