Democratic Senator Barack Obama extended his winning streak over his main democratic rival Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton as yesterday the states of Wisconsin and Hawaii held primaries.

Obama won the Wisconsin primary and the Hawaii caucus last night and set the stage for a major face-off on March 4 when the delegate-rich Texas and Ohio hold primaries.

The Illinois Senator managed to win Wisconsin over Clinton by cutting into the New York Senator’s previous strength among female and blue-collar white voters. The 46-year-old presidential candidate recorded another victory as he won the Hawaii caucus. In small pacific state he is considered a native son as he was born there and graduated from a Hawaiian high school.

With Obama in a wining streak, Mrs. Clinton must win Ohio and Texas in order to salvage her campaign.

On the other side, Sen. John McCain took a step closer to the nomination as he won Wisconsin and Washington primaries in the Republicans’ contest. The veteran Arizona lawmaker managed to obtain the vital margins he needed after surprising defeats to Gov. Mike Huckabee in Louisiana and Kansas as well as a closer-than-expected win in Virginia.

"I think we've achieved liftoff here," Mr. Obama said in Houston. He also thanked the voters "for their friendship and their support and their extraordinary civic pride."

He also said that the change he seeks for the U.S. is far away and he need the help of the state of Texas, hinting at the protracted battle ahead.

Amie a high voter turnout, Obama obtained 58 percent while Mrs. Clinton won 41 percent.

On the Republican side, Mr. McCain had won 54 percent to Mr. Huckabee's 37 percent.

However, the 94 Wisconsin delegates and the 20 Hawaii delegates will have a small impact on the run to the 2,025 the Democratic candidates need for the nomination
The contests will reach a crucial point on March 4 when the two democrats will fight for the 370 delegates up for grabs in Texas, Ohio, Vermont and Rhode Island.

Mr. McCain won 48 percent of the vote, while Mr. Huckabee only got 21 percent.