It wasn?t supposed to turn out like this.

Many people expected the race for the Democratic and Republican nominations to be decided in Iowa and New Hampshire ? and if it wasn?t quite wrapped up at that point, voters in Nevada, South Carolina or Florida would probably finish it up. Surely no race could really remain competitive beyond the behemoth 24-state Super Tuesday. Right?

In case you missed it last year, when confronted with a number of states clamoring to move up their primaries earlier in the year, thereby increasing their influence in the presidential election process, the Democratic and Republican National Committees set Feb. 5 as the earliest date that states without a tradition of early voting could schedule their primaries.  Sixteen states moved up their primaries to join the eight already voting on Super Tuesday, to make the largest number of simultaneous primaries and caucuses in U.S. history. In the scramble, some states ? notably Michigan and Florida ? moved their primaries up too far and had their number of delegates cut in half or taken away all together.

But not in Wisconsin ? we actually moved our primary back a couple days to Feb. 19. And now, here we are, the day after Super Tuesday, with the Democratic race still highly contested, and the Republican race not yet over. Sure, we?ve lost a few candidates, but here in Wisconsin we?re suddenly looking at some rather tough decisions.

If no clear frontrunner emerges out of the Virginia, Maryland and District of Columbia primaries Feb. 12 ? which is certainly possible ? Wisconsin could end up being one of the most important states in this presidential campaign. After our primary and Hawaii?s caucus the next week, no state votes until March 4. A Wisconsin win could make the difference, especially between Sens. Barack Obama and Hilary Clinton.

There are a couple other important factors at play. Wisconsin has an open primary, during which voters registered to any party can vote in either, but not both, of the two primaries This, combined with the fact that Wisconsin has traditionally been a swing state, should tell the rest of the nation something about which candidate is best able to court the independent vote.  Our voting laws ? which require no registration ahead of time ? should help ensure a large turnout.

The outcome here in Madison, which has long been a stronghold for Democratic politicians, could be especially important. Just this week, Mr. Obama?s campaign opened up an office in Laundry 101 on Gilman Street, and it wouldn?t be a shock if we were to get some high-profile visitors in the next two weeks. It?s not a stretch to say what happens right here in Madison could be one of the key outcomes in this primary campaign.

If this turns out to be the case, every person on this campus owes it to himself or herself not only to vote in Wisconsin?s upcoming primary, but to have at least some sort of rational justification for that vote.  And voting for someone because they?re in favor of ?hope? or because they have ?experience? or because the other guy?s a ?flip-flopper? doesn?t count.  In this age of the Internet and 24-hour news, getting informed and making an intelligent decision is the easiest it has ever been.

Getting informed doesn?t mean voting for a candidate because you think that?s what your dad, your mom or Chuck Norris would want you to do. It doesn?t mean voting for a candidate because Tim Russert or CNN says you are likely to do so. Paying attention to candidates? priorities and policy proposals and taking campaign ads and slogans for what they?re worth shouldn?t be out of the question either.

There are plenty of reasons to vote for Mr. Obama beyond the fact that he?s pro-change and pro-hope.  Maybe you like his $120 billion economic stimulus plan, or the fact that he wants to implement a cap-and-trade system for greenhouse gases and make sure all polluters are charged for every ton of emissions they release (Clinton supports it too). Maybe you respect John McCain?s work on campaign finance reform or Romney?s experience in the private sector. Fine.

These may not be easy decisions, but isn?t it nice that this matters for a change ? that we?re at the forefront of the action? So get ready Wisconsin: You have 13 days.

Nathan Braun ([email protected]) is a junior majoring in economics.