(Agencies)
Updated: 2008-04-23 07:58

PHILADELPHIA - Hillary Rodham Clinton and Barack Obama collided Tuesday in the Pennsylvania primary, the last of the big-state contests in a Democratic presidential campaign growing more negative the longer it goes.

Democratic presidential candidates Senator Barack Obama and Senator Hillary Clinton campaigning in Pennsylavania this week in a composite image. Democrats in Pennsylvania make their choice on Tuesday in the presidential nominating race between Clinton and Obama, with Clinton aiming for a big win to keep her flickering White House hopes alive. [Agencies]

With 158 delegates at stake, Pennsylvania offered the largest prize remaining in a primary season that ends on June 3.

Interviews with voters as they left their polling places showed that nearly one in 10 changed their party registration in recent months to be able to cast ballots in a primary open only to Democrats. About half were formerly registered Republicans, the balance unaffiliated with either party.

Women cast about 60 percent of the votes, and turnout among older voters was high.

Voters also had a dim view of the economy. More than 80 percent said the nation is already in a recession, according to the interviews conducted by The Associated Press and the TV networks.

Obama began the night with a delegate lead, 1648 1/2 to 1509 1/2, out of 2,025 needed to win the nomination.

Both rivals sought to shape expectations in advance. Obama said he expected to lose, but narrowly, and worked to limit any gains Clinton made in the delegate chase.

"It's an uphill battle," Obama said of his effort in the state, campaigning at a Pittsburgh diner. He said polls before the voting showed a tighter race than a few weeks ago but "we still, I think, have to consider ourselves the underdog."

Clinton said on Pittsburgh's KDKA that Obama had outspent her in Pennsylvania "three, maybe four to one" and was trying to undercut her possible victory by claiming she should have done even better.

"I think a win is a win. Maybe I'm old fashioned about that," she told reporters earlier in the day. "I think maybe the question ought to be, why can't he close the deal with his extraordinary financial advantage? Why can't he win a state like this one if that's the way it turns out ... big states, states that Democrats have to win."

Pennsylvania voters enjoyed a rare chance to cast ballots in a meaningful primary late in the campaign season. Registration reached a record level.

Penn State student Colin Cwalina, 19, wore his loyalties on his sleeve: He sported a "Hillary 2008" T-shirt at the polls in State College but said he felt outnumbered. "To be honest, Barack Obama has a cult" on campus, Cwalina said.

In Susquehanna Township, Cindy Wiedl, 50, a full-time student at Harrisburg Area Community College, stood before the voting machine for several minutes before choosing Obama, based in part, she said, on his pledge in a Tuesday morning TV interview to help working people.

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