A virtual tie

12 hours after the caucus doors closed and we still don't have a clear decisive winner for the Democrats in Iowa.

The current count, as of roughly 8AM Tuesday, is Hillary Clinton 49.9% to Bernie Sanders 49.6%. The difference is the closest race in Iowa history.

So while it's a virtual tie, Hillary will win the state and get the handful of delegates that comes with it.

More noteworthy is the fact that winning the first official contest is a huge boost for Hillary, and it will make it easier for her to raise money.

But also consider that Bernie Sanders has pretty much come out of nowhere and nearly upset a massively funded candidate. The table is set for an exciting primary next Tuesday in New Hampshire, where the polls are already clearly in Sanders' favor.

To a sports fan like myself, a tie is almost more frustrating than an outright loss. In politics however, you have to look beyond the final score and examine all the ramifications of a razor-thin margin.

Yes, Hillary won.

But nobody at this point thinks Bernie is going away.

After New Hampshire, we have South Carolina and Nevada. but the calendar is a little weird, and also the Washington (state) Republican caucuses. More updates soon.