Barack Obama crushed top rival Hillary Clinton in the South Carolina Democratic primary Saturday, in a decisive victory that could reinvigorate his campaign after suffering back-to-back losses to the New York senator.

Clinton came in a distant second behind Obama and John Edwards took another third place slot. With 100 percent of precincts reporting, Obama had 55 percent, Clinton had 27 percent and Edwards had 18 percent.

The Palmetto State primary was the last vote for Democrats before Super Tuesday Feb. 5, when 24 states hold primaries and caucuses for both parties. Obama, who won the lead-off Iowa caucuses Jan. 3, was looking for a clear and fresh victory after placing second to Clinton in the New Hampshire primary and in Nevada.

Speaking to a raucous crowd of supporters attending his victory party, Obama said that South Carolina proves Iowa was no fluke.

"Well, tonight, the cynics who believed that what began in the snows of Iowa was just an illusion were told a different story by the good people of South Carolina," he said. "After four great contests in every corner of this country, we have the most votes, the most delegates, and the most diverse coalition of Americans we've seen in a long, long time."

Clinton issued a statement just over an hour after polls closed congratulating Obama, and later speaking in Nashville, Tenn., swiftly shifted gears to Feb. 5.

"I've always said this contest was going to go a long time, as people have dropped out and it's gotten to just a couple of us," she said. "And Feb. 5 has always been for me the key. We're going to be doing everything we can, here in Tennessee, in all the states that are going to be voting."

Polls showed Obama holding a strong lead ahead of the vote in South Carolina, but his campaign was cautiously optimistic since Clinton defied polls to win New Hampshire on Jan. 8.

Clinton's campaign had carefully managed expectations going into South Carolina, actively reaching out to the state's voters while accepting the possibility of defeat. Clinton left the state early to watch returns in Nashville, suggesting she was prepared for the loss.

A Clinton campaign memo Saturday said the race would be a delegate contest even after South Carolina, and Bill Clinton had previously suggested that Obama's race would favor him in the Palmetto State over Hillary Clinton's gender.

Bill Clinton was, in fact, his own factor in the race, with 26 percent of voters saying his presence was very important. Among those voters, Hillary Clinton was winning 46 percent of that vote to 43 percent.

Race had been a constant subtext to the state's primary, with earlier polls showing Obama taking a strong lead among black voters.

FOX News exit polls showed black voters went for Obama over Clinton by a huge margin of 80 to 18 percent, and 79 percent of black women supported the Illinois senator. Polls showed he had similar support among black voters in last week's Nevada caucuses, which he lost, but those voters made up about 50 percent of the electorate in South Carolina.

But Obama is looking to score a win built on a diverse coalition of voters, proving he's got broad appeal going into Feb. 5.

"They are young and old; rich and poor. They are black and white; Latino and Asian," he said of his supporters, who chanted "Yes, we can" and "We want change."

"They are Democrats from Des Moines (Iowa) and Independents from Concord (N.H.); Republicans from rural Nevada and young people across this country who've never had a reason to participate until now. And in nine days, nearly half the nation will have the chance to join us in saying that we are tired of business-as-usual in Washington, we are hungry for change, and we are ready to believe again," Obama said.

Obama senior adviser David Axelrod scoffed at any attempt to "spin" Obama as the black candidate who relies on black voters.

"It would be true if we hadn't won in Iowa, hadn't come in a close second in New Hampshire, hadn't carried rural Nevada," Axelrod told FOX News. "It's an attempt to marginalize that which cannot be marginalized."

FOX News exit polls also demonstrated a split among white voters. Edwards, though trailing overall, ran even with Clinton among white voters at 38 percent. Obama got 24 percent of the white vote.

Edwards was seeking a strong showing of his own in his home state, which he won during his 2004 bid for the party's nomination. The former North Carolina senator has yet to win a contest and was looking for a nudge out of the recent bickering that had broken out between Obama and the Clintons.

"I think that voters are ... sick and tired of politicians who spend all their energy fighting with each other," Edwards told FOX News on Saturday.

More than 500,000 voters participated in the race, a record turnout according to South Carolina Democratic Party Chairwoman Carol Fowler. State Election Commission spokesman Chris Whitmire told FOX News officials saw more Democrats come out than during the GOP primary last week. It's usually the reverse, since South Carolina is a solid red state.