According to The Associated Press, Sen. Hillary Clinton, D-N.Y., will withdraw from the presidential race later in the week, thanking her supporters and putting her support behind Obama.

“There are Independents and Republicans who understand that this election isn’t just about the party in charge of Washington, it’s about the need to change Washington,” Obama said Tuesday night in his first speech as the presumptive Democratic nominee. “There are young people, and African Americans, and Latinos, and women of all ages who have voted in numbers that have broken records and inspired a nation.”

Choske said he was happy with the results of Tuesday’s primaries, but also excited about the Democrats being able to unite around a single candidate. While in the past months supporters of Clinton have threatened to divide if Obama received the nomination, Choske said he isn’t worried.

“In the long run, Democrats will all see that Obama stands for change, while McCain supports more of the same and that will bring them together for Obama,” Choske said.

Matt Grossman, assistant professor of political science, said Michigan is going to be a competitive state in the general election.

“I still think that after the primary ends you are likely to see Michigan be slightly to the Democratic side of the national vote,” Grossman said. “If you see a major increase in participation among young people, which we have seen in the primary, continue in the general election, that may have a major pro-Democratic effect.”

Kim Bos, an international relations senior and member of MSU’s Model United Nations, said she doesn’t vote along party lines, but she thought it was great that Obama was the presumed nominee for a nation that is far from equality.

“Wealth is the new race,” she said. “We need to work a lot more on the poverty class instead of race and gender. It will be interesting to see how Obama stacks up against the stereotypical white Protestant male.”

John Beason III, a recent MSU graduate and political affairs director for MSU’s Black Student Alliance, said he is confident Obama will see a victory in November’s election.

“It shows how far we’ve come and how far we have to go,” he said. “Obama is the person to move us in a better direction as a people and as a whole.”

Even supporters of Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., are excited about the race. Ben Morlock, a political science junior and chairman of the MSU College Republicans, said the group had plans for wide-scale voter identification programs to come fall semester.

“People don’t always realize that McCain, with his plans for helping small businesses and the high unemployment rate, is actually wanting to do more for Michigan,” said Morlock. “We want to do everything we can to help MSU students realize this.”

Others say Obama won’t be successful.

“I think it’s good we are moving past racism in our country, but I don’t think he’ll win,” said Derek Jankowski, an interdisciplinary studies in social science senior and member of MSU Libertarians. “I think McCain will do the least damage.”

Saul Anuzis, chairman of the Michigan Republican Party, said he is optimistic that McCain will win the presidency.

“In general, the Democrats picked the least experienced nominee,” Anuzis said. “It’s going to be challenging for them.”

Although Obama is a great speaker, Anuzis said he has no record that his platforms have worked in the past or will work in the future.

“There will be a clear difference in directions that they want to lead the county,” Anuzis said.

The Associated Press Contributed to this report.