At this point in time, in the 2004 contest for the Democratic nomination for President, four Democratic Candidates remained in the race; John Kerry, John Edwards, Dennis Kucinich, and Al Sharpton. With March 2 2004 Super Tuesday approaching, John Kerry had already won 18 out of the 21 contests already held, having lost only in the District of Columbia, South Carolina, and Oklahoma. Senator Kerry was on a bit of a roll at this point, having won the previous 11 contests. All 11 of those victories were by margins of 15% or above, with the sole exception of Wisconsin, where Kerry won by a 6% margin. Over half of Kerry's victories during this run (6) were by margins of over 20%.

On February 28th 2004, none of John Kerry's remaining Democratic opponents had won more than a single primary or caucus in the entire 2004 race, compared to Kerry's 18 total victories by that date. Still, no Democratic Candidate was being pressured to leave the race by forces external to his own campaign, and Senator John Edwards in particular continued to maintain hope of winning the Democratic nomination for President. The media continued to regard Senator Edwards as a serious contender to win the Democratic nomination.