(CNN) -- Sen. John McCain cemented his front-runner status Tuesday, piling up big wins coast-to-coast, according to CNN projections. Democratic voters remain evenly split over which of their candidates they would rather see get the nomination. Sen. Barack Obama won more states Tuesday, but Sen. Hillary Clinton won states with higher delegate counts. McCain capped the night by taking California and its 170 delegates. After having been nearly written off last summer, the Arizona senator finally felt comfortable enough to call himself the front-runner. "Tonight I think we must get used to the idea that we are the Republican Party front-runner for the nomination of president of the United States. And I don't really mind it one bit," he said as results came in Tuesday. Watch McCain claim front-runner status »
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McCain solidifies front-runner status
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Clinton takes delegate-rich states
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Huckabee, Romney vow to keep fighting
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Obama winning more states, but Clinton winning states with more delegates
According to the exit polls, Obama and Clinton are essentially splitting those voters, with 47 percent going for @placeholder and 46 percent for Clinton.
On the @placeholder side, front-runners McCain and Romney have engaged in bitter exchanges over their conservative records in recent weeks.