The Illinois primary victories of presidential candidates Barack Obama and John McCain prompted varying reactions from local political followers.

“A lot of big states were relatively close,” said Matthew Streb, associate professor of political science. “It’s pretty much exactly what we expected on both sides.”

Other reactions saw an outcome different from that projected.

“It may have been the night McCain was supposed to take the solid lead and finish off his opponents, but I don’t see him doing that,” said Mikel Wyckoff, associate professor of political science.

McCain’s blue-state wins in states like Illinois, New York, Connecticut and New Jersey aren’t necessarily within conservative regions.

“McCain’s doing less well in states that are generally Republican, like Southern states,” Wyckoff said, noting Mike Huckabee’s wins throughout the South.

McCain’s status as a more moderate Republican has many conservatives looking for another candidate.

“Two-thirds of Republican voters are conservatives and they don’t like him,” Wyckoff said. “The conservatives can’t quite stomach this guy.”

On the Democratic side, Hillary Clinton and Obama saw a night with “no clear frontrunner,” Streb said.

“The Democrats see a mixed bag; both sides will claim they did well and I think that’s true,” Wyckoff said.

Clinton and Obama each took a solid number of states, with Clinton winning key states like California, New York, Arizona, New Jersey and Arkansas; and Obama gaining Georgia, Colorado, Illinois and Missouri, among others.

“Obama’s taken a much greater share of the white vote,” Wyckoff said. “It’s a much smaller gap than we saw a week ago. The notion that he’s just a black candidate — I think he’s blown that out of the water,” Wyckoff said.

Wyckoff also mentioned that though Obama may have an advantage with black voters, Clinton has a strong appeal with Hispanic voters.

Money may now be an issue for Clinton’s camp, Wyckoff said.

“She hasn’t raised as much [as Obama], and she didn’t expect she’d have to keep fighting this long,” Wyckoff said.

Overall, Wyckoff felt Obama’s Super Tuesday showing was somewhat better than Clinton’s.

“I give [Obama] a slight edge at the end of the night,” Wyckoff said.

Political groups on campus also voiced their opinions on the primary outcomes.

“All of the [Republican] candidates are more than deserving to win,” said Meagan Szydlowski, president of the College Republicans.

Szydlowski said the CR will not endorse any candidate until the primaries are finished, but the group “has been fairly mixed” among candidate preferences.

Kevin Chambliss, president of the College Democrats, felt Obama’s victory could have been greater in Illinois.

“Hillary still made a showing, and it was a disappointment to me,” Chambliss said. “She had 33 percent of the vote, so I was a little disappointed that [Obama] didn’t have a bigger victory.”