With the already familiar primary circuit a mainstay in the minds of voters and the still-large field of candidates yet to be winnowed, strategists have been looking to the Super Tuesday votes of more than 20 states to finally crown unofficial nominees.

But that's mathematically impossible, according to number crunchers.

In the Democratic race, with 1,700 delegate votes up for grabs, even if one candidate wins every state, the take won't be near that. The two strong leading candidates will likely split the votes, as Democrats award their delegates proportionally — not winner-take- all. This math leaves Democrats without the 50 percent support required at the convention. To see what happens to Republican numbers, read more.

Republicans have more than 1,000 delegate votes at stake, though to secure an untouchable status, a candidate would have to win most of those states. This is tricky given that candidates' support tends to break along demographic lines, with no one emerging yet as a solid national pick. Republican candidates will have to appeal nationally in order to hope to fare well on Super Tuesday.

The Feb. 5 Super Tuesday contests would have been the earliest date in modern history that a candidate would have emerged as a presumptive nominee. Are you glad the race is still so dynamic? Or are you ready for the general election already?

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