U.S. Democratic front-runner John Kerry won the Utah primary, and the Hawaii and Idaho caucuses Tuesday, beating his strongest challenger decisively in all three states.

The latest wins put Kerry in a strong position as he heads into next week's climactic round in the race for his party's presidential nomination.

Kerry, a Massachusetts senator, beat challenger John Edwards in all three states. Kerry captured 55 per cent of the Utah vote to Edwards' 30 per cent. In Idaho, Kerry won 54 per cent of the vote with Edwards taking 22 per cent.

John Kerry (AP file photo)

Edwards came in third in Hawaii with only 13 per cent of the vote. Kerry won with 46 per cent, followed by Ohio Rep. Dennis Kucinich with 30 per cent.

The candidates will now shift their priorities to Super Tuesday on Mar. 2. Voting states include California, Connecticut, Georgia, Maryland, Massachusetts, Minnesota, New York, Ohio, Rhode Island and Vermont.

Going in to Tuesday's vote, Kerry had won 16 of 18 state contests, while Edwards has trailed in second place.

The other remaining candidates include Rev. Al Sharpton and Kucinich.

Howard Dean and Wesley Clark had earlier dropped out of the Democratic race.