Democratic presidential hopefuls Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama shift their fight to South Carolina after a split result in Nevada's contest failed to yield a clear winner in the battle for the US Democratic presidential nomination.
Meanwhile, Republican John McCain's victory in South Carolina gave his campaign renewed momentum ahead of a crucial battle in Florida, while former governor of Massachusetts Mitt Romney won among the Republicans in Nevada.
Clinton captured the popular vote among Democrats on Saturday in Nevada, but Obama edged her out for national convention delegates, taking 13 to her 12.
Their next battle will be the Democrats' first in the South, where Obama is relying on black voters, who make up more than half of the South Carolina Democratic electorate, to give him a winning edge. Most polls have him leading Clinton in the state.
But Clinton has won over many influential black leaders and had led in the state before Obama's Iowa victory established him as a strong contender.
Overall, Clinton leads the Democrats' delegate race with 236, including separately chosen party and elected officials known as superdelegates. Obama has a total of 136. Former North Carolina senator John Edwards is trailing with 50 delegates.
Among Republican candidates, McCain, whose campaign was left for dead six months ago, quickly predicted that victory in the first southern primary would help him next week when Florida votes, and again on Feb. 5, dubbed "Super Tuesday," when more than two dozen states hold primaries and caucuses.
The Arizona senator defeated former Arkansas governor Mike Huckabee in a close race in the conservative state that snuffed out his presidential hopes eight years ago.
McCain had 33 percent of the vote to just under 30 percent for his closest rival. He won 19 delegates while Huckabee won five.
Appearing before supporters, Huckabee was a gracious loser, congratulating McCain for "running a civil and a good and a decent campaign."
Far from conceding defeat in the race, he said: "The process is far, far from over."
Former Tennessee senator Fred Thompson was in a struggle for third place with about 16 percent after saying he needed a strong showing to sustain his candidacy.
Romney rolled to victory in Nevada Republican caucuses, winning roughly 50 percent of the vote in a multi-candidate field. The other top Republican candidates campaigned little in Nevada, deeming South Carolina the more important race for being the first contest in a southern state.
In the race for delegates, Romney leads with 59, followed by Huckabee with 40 and McCain with 36.
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