A month ago, many observers thought Wisconsin's Feb. 19 presidential primary would feature a more hotly contested Republican race than its Democratic counterpart.

After Super Tuesday's results, the opposite could very well be true.

"There has been an about-face, but if 2008 has shown us anything, it's that the conventional wisdom doesn't mean a thing," said Mark Jefferson, executive director of the state Republican Party, as results trickled in Tuesday night. "And if today we think the Republicans are going to wrap it up early and the Democrats are going to be undecided into the summer, that could also turn out to be wrong."

Democratic Sens. Hillary Clinton of New York and Barack Obama of Illinois remain locked in a tight battle for their party's nomination that campaign officials and observers expect will carry into Wisconsin and beyond - possibly to the party convention in August.

But on the Republican side, Sen. John McCain of Arizona widened his lead Tuesday over former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney and former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee. That gives him momentum heading into other contests this month, including Wisconsin's, said Ed Miller, a political science professor at UW-Stevens Point.

"It was a tough night for Mitt," conceded Terry Dittrich, a Wisconsin fundraiser for Romney. "Certainly Mike Huckabee did better than we expected and took some votes from us."

With his personal fortune and courting of conservatives, Romney positioned himself to challenge McCain. But by losing California to McCain, "it suggests there's no real traction for Romney," Dennis Goldford, a politics professor at Drake University in Des Moines, said Tuesday.

Observers say Huckabee and Rep. Ron Paul of Texas likely won't be able to compete with McCain for the nomination - even if they remain in the race through the Wisconsin primary. Huckabee and Romney said Tuesday night they plan to fight on, and state campaign officials said they would compete here.

Six states and the District of Columbia hold primaries or caucuses between Saturday and Tuesday. But experts say after that, Wisconsin will have the nation's attention leading up to the Feb. 19 primary.

"The circus is coming to town," said Mike Tate, a Milwaukee-based Democratic political consultant. "We're going to have five to seven days of unadulterated Wisconsin primary action. Three months ago, who knew?"

Hawaii and Washington also hold primaries on Feb. 19, but they're considered less competitive than Wisconsin.

Laying groundwork

Clinton and Obama are laying the groundwork for aggressive campaigns here, and a Wisconsin win would give either candidate momentum heading into primaries in Ohio and Texas in early March, observers said.

"What we're probably going to have for the Democrats after today is trench warfare, taking an inch of ground at a time," Goldford said. "Every primary or caucus matters."

Both campaigns will devote more staff and resources to Wisconsin as soon as today.

Heather Colburn, a volunteer coordinator for Clinton, said her campaign will have 32 full-time volunteer organizers in 11 cities as of today, nearly three times more than there were before Tuesday.

A Clinton spokesman said Tuesday that full-time paid staff have arrived in Wisconsin, with additional workers to come this week. Decisions on when and where Clinton and her supporters - including Lt. Gov. Barbara Lawton - will campaign will be made as soon as today.

Clinton has raised $180,583 from Wisconsin residents, federal records show.

"Wisconsin is an important part of her nomination strategy," Colburn said.

But top Clinton advisers acknowledged Obama is well-positioned to win several upcoming contests, and they pointed to the March 4 primaries of Ohio and Texas and the Pennsylvania vote on April 22 as targets.

Dan Leistikow, Wisconsin spokesman for Obama's campaign, said that in the coming days, Obama will set up campaign offices in other cities to complement the organizing already being done in Madison and Milwaukee.

Obama, who has raised $583,523 from Wisconsin residents, and his wife, Michelle, will spend "significant time" in Wisconsin in the coming weeks, Leistikow said.

Gov. Jim Doyle, who endorsed Obama, also will campaign for him. He'll be in Green Bay and Oshkosh today, and Eau Claire and La Crosse on Thursday.

No GOP staff

It's less clear what the Republicans will do in Wisconsin.

Jefferson said none of the GOP campaigns have staff in the state. And he said if the race remains competitive, the candidates will focus on the primaries in Virginia and Maryland on Tuesday before turning their attention to Wisconsin.

Mark Graul, a Green Bay-based Republican political consultant, said Romney is better positioned to organize here. He has already lined up several prominent fundraisers and has been picking up support from conservatives.

But he said McCain would appeal to independent voters and those who appreciate his maverick streak. "Bandwagons that have momentum have a funny way of getting pretty crowded pretty fast," Graul said of McCain.

McCain's top Wisconsin fundraiser, Jon Hammes, referred calls to McCain's press office. Officials there didn't respond to requests for comment.

McCain raised $179,799 from Wisconsin residents, while Romney picked up $143,144 and Huckabee raised $45,781.