John Kerry in Middleton, Wisconsin. (Reuters)

Middleton (Wisconsin), Feb. 18 (Reuters): Democratic presidential front-runner John Kerry yesterday eked out a victory over John Edwards in Wisconsin that he said had moved his White House bid forward.

The four-term Massachusetts Senator has won 15 of the 17 contests so far in all parts of the country. He remains the undisputed leader in money and momentum, despite Edwards’ good showing in Wisconsin.

Kerry heads into the March 2 “Super Tuesday” round of 10 contests in big states like New York, California and Ohio with a clear chance of clinching the nomination. “The motto of the state of Wisconsin is forward, and I want to thank the state of Wisconsin for moving this cause and this campaign forward,” he told chanting supporters at a hotel ballroom in Middleton.

Kerry held a wide lead in pre-election polls, but the surveys were taken before Edwards’ good performance in a televised debate on Sunday and major newspaper endorsements for the North Carolina senator.

In a subdued victory speech, Kerry, who is fighting a cold and dealing with a persistent cough, neither mentioned the narrow margin of his win — just a few percentage points — nor his rivals, focusing instead on a potential matchup with President George W. Bush in November.

He vowed to “cut the poverty of millions instead of cutting taxes for millionaires,” make health care a right instead of a privilege and restore the almost 3 million jobs lost since Bush took office.

The decorated Vietnam War veteran pledged to stand up to Bush, a war-time commander-in-chief, by reminding America that “some of us know something about aircraft carriers for real.” Kerry, who shares a similar background — Massachusetts blueblood, Senator, war hero — and the initials of John F. Kennedy, borrowed from the slain former President as he complimented his wife Teresa Heinz Kerry.

“Everywhere I go, people say I wanted to see Teresa, so I’m getting to be the guy who accompanies Teresa around the United States of America,” he said.

Kennedy made a similar remark about his wife Jacqueline when the couple visited Paris. Earlier, Kerry contrasted his approach of running in all states holding nominating contests to Edwards’ decision to run in selected states. “I think you can’t run for President cherry-picking states here and there, picking up one or two delegates here and somewhere,” Kerry said.

“You have to run for President nationally, and I think I’ve been the only one in recent weeks whose been doing that and proving an ability to win in these places nationally.”

Dean pulls out

Former Democratic front-runner Howard Dean today pulled the plug on his roller-coaster White House bid. “Today my candidacy may come to an end — but our campaign for change is not over,” Dean declared in an Internet message to online backers. The former Vermont governor delivered the notice before he planned to announce his decision with a speech in his hometown of Burlington.