Field Cut to Two-horse Contest in Both Parties

The contest for the White House claimed its biggest casualties so far yesterday when John Edwards and Rudy Giuliani pulled out, turning it into a two-horse race for both the Democrats and Republicans. The Democratic duo, Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama, immediately began to court Edwards for his endorsement and scramble for his supporters ahead of next week's "Super Tuesday" contest.

Edwards, who fought on an anti-poverty program, chose to make his announcement in one of the poorest black areas of New Orleans, where he launched his failed bid in December 2006. The former US senator for North Carolina said he was stepping aside for Clinton and Obama "so that history can blaze its path".

He did not endorse either, but said "they have both pledged to me - and more importantly through me to America - that they will make ending poverty central to their campaign for the presidency."

In the Republican race, Tuesday's Florida primary whittled down the field to basically John McCain, the Arizona senator and US war hero, and Mitt Romney, the multi-millionaire businessman and former governor of Massachusetts.

Giuliani, announcing his decision to step aside, endorsed his longtime friend McCain. "John McCain is the most qualified candidate to be the next commander-in-chief of the United States," Giuliani said. "He's an American hero." He said: "If I'd endorsed anyone else, you would say I was flip-flopping," mentioning an oft-repeated criticism of McCain's chief rival, Romney.

Romney, speaking on television yesterday, said he welcomed the reduced field. "In a two-person race, with myself and senator McCain, I like my chances." He admitted that his campaign would be hurt by Giuliani's endorsement of McCain.

One of Giuliani's advisers, the congressman Peter King, said: "I expect him [Giuliani] to be fairly active for McCain. There is a real friendship and respect between the two."

Romney and McCain were scheduled to clash in a televised debate in California last night, to be followed tonight by Obama and Clinton. Edwards telephoned the Democratic duo on Tuesday night to inform them of his decision. Obama, who asked him for his endorsement, yesterday paid tribute to the way he had fought the campaign, describing it as "classy" and saying his anti-poverty platform had given "hope to the struggling". Clinton, who had a private 20-minute chat with Edwards last week, was also full of praise and promised her presidency would address poverty.

An AP-Yahoo poll published this month suggested that 40% of Edwards's supporters would go to Clinton and about 25% to Obama. Clinton and Obama would also like to secure the 56 delegates to the party convention in the summer that Edwards has accumulated. Edwards decided to drop out after his poor third place on in South Carolina's primary on Saturday, a galling loss given that he was born in the state.

Giuliani, the former mayor of New York, flew to California after a humiliating defeat in Tuesday's Florida primary, when he came a distant third, on 15%. McCain took 36% and Romney 31%.

Romney has his personal fortune to spend on a media blitz to eat into McCain's huge opinion poll leads in California and other Super Tuesday states.

Florida Republicans, canvassed by pollsters as they left the voting booths, said they had voted on personal qualities, rather than issues, and that McCain had more appeal, even among social conservatives. He is regarded as a genuine patriot, based in part on his five and a half years in a Vietnam prisoner of war camp.

Mike Huckabee, the Baptist pastor and surprise winner of the Republican caucuses, remains in the race, hoping for support in southern states on Super Tuesday. He only managed 13.5% in Florida, but did not campaign much there, due to lack of funds. The final remaining Republican candidate, Ron Paul, took only 3%.

Clinton beat Obama by 50% to 33% in the Florida primary, but it was a largely hollow victory because the Democratic party had stripped the state of its delegates because it opted to hold its primary before February 5, in defiance of party rules. The candidates agreed last year not to campaign in the state as a result.

Edwards took 14%. Clinton will try to force the Democratic party to reverse its decision and allow Florida's delegates to have their voting rights restored.