Convention fireworks looming for Democrats?

So much for Pennsylvania being the keystone state in the Democratic presidential nomination battle.

What we know about my native commonwealth is that its aging population of blue-collar folk loves Hillary Clinton. But most of the estimated 200,000 former Republicans who participated in Tuesday's Pennsylvania primary opted for Barack Obama.

As much as Clinton earned a decisive victory, she is still no closer to securing enough delegates to win the nomination. The net gain from Tuesday's 10-point victory? A whopping 18 delegates.

Obama still has the math, the map and the money to keep the pledged delegate lead from now until June, when the last Democratic voter participates.

And Clinton will be hard-pressed to head to Denver for the party's August national convention and win the superdelegates at that point, giving Obama the remaining delegates he needs to secure the nomination.

Clinton is staying in the race, just in case. But unless Obama is found in bed with a dead girl or a live boy, she'll have to bow out at some point.

That won't happen until June, though, and Nevada Democrats hold their state convention May 17 in Reno.

And assuming the campaign between Clinton and Obama gets even dirtier (it's Clinton's best chance in Indiana on May 6), the animosity between the two camps in Nevada could be fired up and ready to blow at the May 17 meeting.

The state Democratic Party is run by the best professionals in politics, period. That said, how exactly do you elect delegates to the national convention when a little more than half will be pledged to someone who isn't the nominee?

Modern national conventions are not exactly places you'll find vocal dissent. The last thing Howard Dean & Co. want is a convention that spirals out of control just days before the Republicans convene in Minnesota for their John McCain lovefest.

The Democratic National Committee has already started running anti-McCain ads in key battleground states such as Nevada to try to keep the focus off the Clinton-Obama battle.

But imagine how much money they'll have to blow to keep the attention off themselves as this process continues for weeks, if not months.

The Republicans like to call themselves the party of the "big tent." And Saturday's state GOP convention in Reno is shaping up to be a very big tent indeed. Not only will the party nominate 34 delegates to cheer on McCain in the Twin Cities, it will also bring the top two vote getters from Nevada's Jan. 19 caucus to speak.

Former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney, who won Nevada, will give as rousing a call to arms for McCain as you can expect. And for those who like the libertarian views of Texas Rep. Ron Paul (he placed second here, ahead of McCain), they'll get to hear just enough criticism of the current administration and Democrats to boot.

Assuming the state party steers clear of more embarrassing pro-Yucca Mountain, anti-gay or really right-wing platform planks, the perception after this weekend's convention will be that the Republicans are united and ready to take on either Democrat (although they'd really prefer the Clintons).

It's amazing how this election cycle has turned. Prior to Iowa and New Hampshire -- heck, even after both states voted -- it was still easier to envision the Republicans being the party that went into the convention without a set nominee.

On the Democratic side, it was assumed Clinton was the inevitable choice.

The Republicans' winner-take-all approach in awarding delegates, and Rudy Giuliani's failure to fire, led to a smooth, quick process. McCain was already the nominee way back before the county conventions. Back then, slamming the Democrats as tax raisers sufficed.

Now, when the Republicans convene for their state convention, they'll get to bandy about the new Clinton lies and Obama's ties to whomever else.

Meanwhile, when Democrats meet, they'll be electing some delegates to Denver who will eventually have to choose to back a different candidate.

For some, that won't be a problem. But if Clinton miraculously emerges as the nominee, the Obama delegates could easily revolt.

And what if you are elected to Denver as a Clinton delegate and Obama does secure the nomination? Just how fired up would you be to fork over a few thousand dollars in travel costs for your second choice?

Unity is hard enough without a candidate battle. Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid of Nevada predicted last week the fight will all "be over soon." The real question is whether that will be soon enough.

Contact Erin Neff at eneff@reviewjournal.com or 702-387-2906.