Albuquerque, New Mexico: Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton has finally got the news that she was pining to hear; she has won the New Mexico contest that held on February 5, edging out her arch rival Barack Obama narrowly.

Nine days after Super Tuesday voting ended, the New Mexico contest’s result, announced on Thursday, revealed that Mrs. Clinton defeated Barack Obama by 1,709 votes.

Brad Colon, a New Mexico Democratic Party election official, reported that Clinton defeated Obama 73,105 (48.8 percent) to 71,396 (47.6 percent), with a margin of just 1,709 votes in the New Mexico contest.

The New Mexico victory has won Mrs. Clinton 14 delegates, compared to 12 for Mr. Obama. From the beginning, Clinton was the most popular candidate in 27 of the state’s 33 counties. After the result of the New Mexico contest, Obama’s delegate count stood at 1,276 and Clinton’s at 1,220 on Thursday.

State Democratic Chairman Brian Colon reported that the delay in naming the winner of the NM contest was due to organizational difficulties at some precincts. Long lines and a ballot shortage forced some 17,000 voters to cast provisional ballots, which had to be hand counted.

In a statement released immediately by the Clinton campaign after the announcement of the NM result on Thursday, Hillary Clinton said, “I am so proud to have earned the support of New Mexicans from across the state. From strengthening the economy to providing health care for every American to jumpstarting a clean energy future, New Mexicans want real solutions to our nation’s challenges. As president, I will continue to stand up for New Mexico and will hit the ground running on day one to bring about real change.”

Obama campaign has accepted the New Mexico outcome. When asked Thursday if they were confident the results were 100 percent accurate or if Obama might seek a recount, Obama's state director, Carlos Monje Jr. replied, "We have confidence in the process. Obama has momentum from eight wins since Super Tuesday and we are going to look forward at the contests we have remaining."