Sugar cookies shaped like Sen. Hillary Clinton’s head sit on the white tablecloth tables at Chapala Restaurant in Salinas on Tuesday night. Blue “Hillary for President” signs cover the walls along with a few green “Clinton Country” posters. Primed with margaritas and Mexican food, Clinton supporters clap and shout as CNN exit polls show a strong lead for her in California. “You go girl! Whew!” a Hillary fan yells.

Shawn Bagley, the California Democratic Party’s Central Coast director, takes the stage to congratulate Clinton campaign volunteers who helped her win the state, Super Tuesday’s top prize. Earlier today, Bagley says volunteers delivered 4,400 Clinton pamphlets in the Salinas area. “We found nothing but Clinton supporters,” Bagley says.

Brielle Bumba, vice president of the Salinas Valley Democratic Club, wears a shirt showing Clinton’s face with a President 2008 label. She says she has wanted Clinton to be the president for years. Like most Democrats, Bumba likes Sen. Barack Obama, too. “I’m torn between the two,” she says. But her allegiance is to Clinton. “She’s my girl. I think a woman deserves a chance.”

CNN streams national results on the big-screen TV, but there is still no word on the state propositions. Bettye Pina, president of the local Democratic Club, hopes Proposition 93 passes so Assemblyman John Laird can run again. The proposition would allow state legislators like Laird to serve 12 consecutive years in either the Assembly or Senate. Pina says this would lead to more experienced lawmakers in office. “There wouldn’t be so many naïve people coming in,” she says.

But Prop. 93 was losing by a narrow, statewide margin late Tuesday. Ultimately, the term-limit initiative would fail, as would Proposition 91, a transportation-funding measure (even its authors urged a no vote on this one), and Proposition 92, which would earmark funding for community colleges. Votes approved the four Indian gaming initiatives, Propositions 94-97.

Prop. 93 fared better in Monterey County, winning about 53 percent of the vote. About 55 percent of county voters also supported Clinton, compared with 38 percent who voted for Obama.

Meanwhile, Obama supporters gathered at Ol’ Factory Café in Sand City on Super Tuesday, and remained upbeat about the senator becoming the United States’ first African-American president. “We’ve come from being 25 points behind three weeks ago to a virtual tie tonight,” says Allan Groves, Obama volunteer organizer for the 17th Congressional District. “We think that it is going to be a fight for delegates well on into the spring.”