Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama split primary wins in Kentucky and Oregon last night, but their contest was not the only one with national implications. Democratic voters in those two states also chose their party’s candidates for U.S. Senate, setting the stage for competitive races against Republican incumbents this November.

I’ve written before about the presidential candidates trotting out their hunting bona fides to strut their stuff in rural primary states.

Senator Hillary Clinton won Ohio and Texas last night, guaranteeing that the Democratic contest between her and Senator Barack Obama will remain unsettled for some time, at least until the Pennsylvania primary on April 22.  But two other outcomes from last night have settled issues of great importance to animal advocates.

A new book scheduled for release this summer—“A Rare Breed of Love” by my good friend Jana Kohl—will change the face of the puppy mill debate in this country.  It’s the touching story of Baby, a poodle who survived a grueling decade in a northern California puppy mill factory, trapped in a tiny cage, churning out litter after litter for commercial sale.

Gail Collins had her trenchant wit on full display in a weekend op-ed column, “A Bad Year to Be a Mallard,” in the New York Times.

In the wake of the nation’s largest beef recall in history, food safety and animal welfare have become part of presidential campaign season. I wrote yesterday that Senator Hillary Clinton issued a statement calling for better safeguards in our food inspection system.

The U.S. Department of Agriculture has announced a massive recall of 143 million pounds of beef—four times larger than what was previously the biggest beef recall in the nation’s history—after revelations that sick and injured cows were abused in horrifying ways and fed to the nation’s school children and other consumers.

At the Humane Society Legislative Fund, one of our goals is to let constituents know where their elected officials stand on animal protection issues. We publish the Humane Scorecard, which tracks legislators’ voting records and co-sponsorships on key animal welfare measures. We celebrate lawmakers who use their skills and talents to advance the humane treatment of animals, and we hold those accountable who are hostile to modest and common-sense reforms to stop cruelty and abuse.

When the early returns trickled in last night in D.C., Maryland, and Virginia, it was clear that Senators Barack Obama and John McCain would sweep the Potomac Primary. But there were a couple other Chesapeake Challenges that captured my attention all night long, and weren’t settled until early this morning.

Iowa, New Hampshire, and Nevada have weighed in, but the race to the White House is still wide open for both Democrats and Republicans.  A number of states will be making their party nominations in the coming weeks, including more than 20 states on “Super Tuesday,” February 5th.