Even before the results of the South Dakota primary came in Tuesday night (June 3), Democratic Senator Barack Obama inched to within four delegates of clinching the nomination of his party. Then, just moments after the polls in that state closed, CNN projected that Obama had indeed secured enough votes to become the first black man in U.S. history to become the nominee of a major American political party.

As for the results of Tuesday's primaries, Senator Hillary Clinton is projected to win in South Dakota 56 percent to 44 percent, with 47 percent of precincts reporting. Obama is projected to win in Montana by CNN, though no precincts are reporting yet. The delegate total in Tuesday's contests in South Dakota and Montana — the final two votes in a long, hard-fought nomination battle between the two rivals — was small at just 31 delegates.

Before the South Dakota vote was counted, Obama's tally stood at 2,114 delegates, just a shade below the 2,118 needed to secure his long-sought goal. The presumptive victory by Obama, which was secured in part by the enthusiastic support of young voters, an army of Internet donors and a message of hope and change, helped the first- term Illinois senator rise up from 30 points behind Clinton last year to the nomination of his party in an epic battle between a political dynasty and a brash newcomer that will go down in U.S. political history.

Clinton, vying to be the first female presidential nominee of a major U.S. party, was the presumptive front-runner when she entered the race last year, and her success in large states and among older voters and women presented a formidable challenge to Obama once his momentum began to take shape early in the primary season.

Speaking before a raucous crowd, a calm-looking Clinton began her address by congratulating Obama and his supporters for their "extraordinary" race. "Senator Obama has inspired so many Americans to care about politics and empowered so many more to get involved. And our party and our democracy is stronger and more vibrant as a result." Clinton's campaign said she logged nearly 18 million votes, a number it claimed was the highest total for any candidate in primary history. And, as she looked back on the highs of the long primary, her supporters repeatedly interrupted with chants of "Yes she will!" despite the finality of Tuesday's results.

"I often felt that each of your votes was a prayer for our nation," Clinton said. "A declaration of your dreams for your children. A reflection of your desire to chart a new course in this new century. And in the end, while this primary was long, I am so proud we stayed the course together." Clinton spoke of the record numbers of voters, 35 million, who voted in the primaries, and while she didn't come anywhere close to explicitly endorsing Obama, she did offer that she was committed to "uniting our party so we move forward stronger and more ready than ever to take back the White House this November."

Answering the question on everyone's mind, Clinton acknowledged that many people have wondered just what it is she wants out of this race. "I want what I have always fought for in this whole campaign: I want to end the war in Iraq. I want to turn this economy around. I want health care for every American. I want every child to live up to his or her God-given potential. And I want the nearly 18 million Americans who voted for me to be respected, to be heard and no longer to be invisible."

As promised, Clinton did not announce what her plans were now that Obama has crossed the mathematical threshold. "The question now is where do we go from here?" Clinton asked. "Given how far we've come and where we need to go as a party, it's a question I don't take lightly. This has been a long campaign, and I will be making no decisions tonight," she said to loud cheers, adding that she would be consulting with party leaders and supporters over the next few days to determine how to move forward.

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[Originally published at 9:44 p.m. ET on 06.03.08]