There are always plenty of election night parties in Corvallis, but usually they’re in November.

For the first time in a generation, Oregonians’ votes counted for something in a presidential primary. And although Sen. Barack Obama easily defeated Democratic rival Sen. Hillary Clinton of New York, the competition added a major dose of excitement to what usually is a quadrennial nonevent.

“Barack got 70 percent in Benton County!” Obama volunteer Scott Clifford crowed to supporters of the Illinois senator during a post-election party at McMenamins on Tuesday night.

Several dozen people sporting Obama T-shirts and campaign buttons gathered at the campus-area brewpub to celebrate their candidate’s victory, sipping pints beneath a giant video monitor tuned to CNN election coverage.

Many of them were members of the Oregon State University chapter of Students for Barack Obama, part of a national groundswell of young voters who’d embraced the campaign.

“He actually took the time to speak to our generation and ask something of us,” said the 22-year-old Clifford, coordinator of the 500-member OSU contingent. “Our whole lives, people have been telling us we can’t do anything until we get a college degree, and Barack Obama not only asked something of us, he expected it.”

George Kemper, 23, an Obama volunteer making his first foray into political canvassing, said it wasn’t just the young who were inspired by this election.

“In general, people were excited that the race was so close,” he said. “They’re really energized. People are registering to vote in record numbers.”

Voter surveys bear that out — up to a point.

“It’s certainly energizing certain segments of the electorate, certainly Democrats and especially younger voters,” said Portland political pollster Tim Hibbitts. “But I don’t think the Republicans are energized.”

In part, he said, that’s because Arizona Sen. John McCain has virtually wrapped up the GOP nomination, but another factor is the Bush administration’s low approval ratings and the unpopular war in Iraq.

Still, he said, that doesn’t mean the Republicans won’t put up a fight in the general election.

“That could change by the fall,” Hibbitts said. “One thing I do want to emphasize is this is the middle of May — how things look in October may be totally different.”

Bennett Hall can be reached at 758-9529 or bennett.hall@lee.net.