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WASHINGTON - DEMOCRAT Barack Obama scored an easy win in Vermont, the first of four states to wrap up its voting on Tuesday in presidential showdowns that could decide the fate of Hillary Clinton's White House bid.
The win for Mr Obama, an Illinois senator, gave him 12 straight victories in his hard-fought duel with Mrs Clinton to be the Democratic nominee in the November presidential election.
John McCain moved closer to sealing the Republican presidential nomination, winning Ohio and Vermont. That put him within about 130 of the 1,191-delegate total needed to clinch the nomination. Aides readied a giant banner bearing the magic number - 1,191 - to serve as a backdrop for an anticipated victory celebration in Dallas.
Mrs Clinton was under pressure to score wins in the two biggest states, Ohio and Texas, to keep her White House hopes alive and prolong the hotly contested Democratic campaign with Mr Obama.
Turnout was reported heavy in all four states, and the Mr Obama and Mrs Clinton campaigns traded accusations of irregularities at the polls in both Ohio and Texas.
Polls close in Ohio at 7.30pm EST (8.30am Singapore time on Wednesday) and all voting in Texas will be over by 9pm EST (10am Singapore time on Wednesday). First results could be available immediately after the polls close, although tight races could take hours to resolve.
For Mrs Clinton, a New York senator, wins in both Ohio and Texas would rejuvenate her campaign and send the race on towards the next major contest - Pennsylvania on April 22.
Losses in both, or even one, could set off a stampede of party support for Mr Obama, raise pressure on Mrs Clinton to drop out and make it even tougher for her to cut Mr Obama's lead in the pledged delegates who will choose the Democratic nominee to contest November's presidential election. -- AFP, REUTERS
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