Court Case Could Alter Nev. Outcome

http://apnews.excite.com/article/20080117/D8U7AI7O1.html

Jan 16, 7:59 PM (ET)

By KATHLEEN HENNESSEY

LAS VEGAS (AP) - A last-minute federal court battle over caucus rules demonstrates just how important a tight three-way Democratic presidential contest in Nevada has become in the battle for momentum headed into Super Tuesday's votes.

Hillary Rodham Clinton, Barack Obama and John Edwards are in a statistical dead heat in polling here before Saturday's caucuses. And Nevada's sizable blocs of Hispanic, union and urban voters could provide an indicator of where the race is headed on Feb. 5, when hundreds of delegates will be awarded in states with significant minority populations.


Democratic presidential hopeful former Sen. John Edwards, D-N.C., right, responds to a question as Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton, D-N.Y., watches during a Democratic presidential debate in Las Vegas, Tuesday, Jan. 15, 2008. (AP Photo/Jae C. Hong)


By contrast, Republican candidates have stayed away from the diverse electorate and unfamiliar electoral landscape as Nevada voters weigh in earlier than ever before.

No major GOP candidate has set foot in the state for two months, and some Republicans are bracing for a possible surprise first-place showing by long-shot Texas Rep. Ron Paul, the only Republican to broadcast TV ads in Nevada.

At issue in a federal court hearing Thursday is whether Democratic caucuses will be held in nine casinos along the Las Vegas Strip. The special locations were designed to make it easier for housekeepers, waitresses and bellhops in the state's biggest industry to caucus at midday near their jobs rather than returning home to neighborhood precincts.

The rules were unanimously approved by the state Democratic party last March and ratified by the Democratic National Committee in August.

FULL story at link.

You go girl. Show that Republican's they ain't got nothing on you.

The polling places were approved by the DNC ages ago, and they were not challenged until the day after the Culinary Union endorsed Obama.

http://www.latestpolitics.com/blog/2008/01/in-tense-exchange-president.html Found it on huffington post article is linked