On this day in 1952 Princess Elizabeth is crowned Queen of England, succeeding her father King George VI, who had suffered a heart attack. Also on this day in 1985 President Reagan, on his birthday, in his State of the Union speech outlines the principles that would become known as the Reagan Doctrine. On to today's top stories:

"Two Parties, Two Distinct Paths to the Nomination" (Adam Nagourney, New York Times) Things turned out the way the experts predicted last night -- mostly. The Republicans have a frontrunner, but not a crowned nominee. The Democrats have two equally competitive candidates.

"Tight Contests Draw Big Voter Turnout" (June Kronholz, Wall Street Journal) Across all 24 states which voted yesterday, voter turned out in record-breaking numbers. The difference: Many more Democratic voters turned out than GOP voters, underscoring what could be a difficult election year for whomever the candidate is.

"McCain Dominates Big States" (Michael Shear and Peter Baker, Washington Post) Whether it's enough to clinch the nomination for him, John McCain won some big of the biggest trophies last night, including California. But he lost much of the South and, despite his victory in home-state Arizona, the mountain West.

"McCain's Rivals Vow to Stay in Race" (Alan Gomez, USA Today) So while McCain marches slow and steady toward the nomination, the one thing he couldn't accomplish, at least in the near term, was a knock out of any of his rivals. His weaknesses in certain sectors of the country must have the McCain campaign slightly worried, but the good news is that with a host of delegates now at his back, McCain has time to shore up his support.

"With No Losers, the Fight Goes On" (Doyle McManus and Peter Wallsten, Los Angeles Times) And then there are the Democrats, whose Super Tuesday turned out more or less as planned. Hillary Clinton won California, but Barack Obama carried bellwether states like Missouri. As reporters McManus and Wallsten note, the race is turning even more racial, with minorities going heavily for one candidate or the other.

"Dems Head for Messy Nomination Process" (Roger Simon, The Politico) The Democratic race is entering uncharted territory and that has a few party officials nervous. The scenario some foresee is a convention where Obama enters with more delegates, but Clinton has more superdelegates. The fight would be bruising and could split the party just when it needs to rally around a nominee.

"Huckabee Points to Southern Strength" (Jill Zemen, Associated Press) More than anyone else last night, Huckabee pulled off the biggest surprise: Winning Southern states and revealing a strong base of support. It's not enough, however, where anyone thinks he could capture the nomination, but we should give the plucky former Arkansas governor credit: Every time his obituary is written, he rises from the dead.

"In the Next Round, Romney Needs Some Big Wins" (Alan Wirzbicki, Boston Globe) Which might be an understatement. Things look bleak for Romney, despite winning enough states to continue his campaign. Romney accomplished almost nothing he needed to do last night and looking forward it's hard to see how he could capture the nomination. But, if this race has taught us anything, it's never say never.

"For Candidates, Lighter Schedules Ahead After a Frenzied Day of Voting" (John Broder, New York Times) The next big round of primaries is on March 4, when Ohio, Rhode Island, Texas and Vermont go to the polls. It allows the campaigns some time to regroup and rethink.

Get today's other election stories at RCP's Politics and Election page.