Boost for Obama as three more superdelegates pledge support

BARACK Obama’s sprint to the Democratic nomination received another boost yesterday as three more superdelegates pledged their support, including one who dropped his backing for Hillary Clinton’s faltering White House bid.

The two Democrats have been lobbying superdelegates — who are not bound by state results — to line up behind them in the final push for the nomination.

While Senator Obama has presented himself, albeit subtly, as the inevitable candidate, Clinton’s efforts have been to ward off further defections and convince the crucial voting block that her candidacy still retained signs of life.

Obama, a step closer to making history after a strong showing in two state primaries earlier this week, appeared to be more convincing in delivering his message.

Yesterday, a spokesman for Obama, Dan Pfeiffer said the candidate had picked up two new superdelegates, including one who had previously supported the former first lady.

Another superdelegate, John Gage, president of the American Federation of Government Employees, said yesterday he too was endorsing Obama. The union is also throwing its support behind him.

While calling Clinton a friend and saying she has worked hard for federal employees, Gage said some members of AFGE’s board think having Obama as the Democratic nominee would help the party as a whole. The union represents 600,000 workers in the federal government.

Obama received the backing of two other superdelegates on Thursday, an announcement that came shortly after he made an impromptu, and well-received, appearance in the US House of Representatives.

Clinton, who had also earlier made a similar pitch in Congress, campaigned on friendly turf in West Virginia, where she is expected to win in the next vote on Tuesday. She told supporters she had faced similar pressure to withdraw before she went on to win New Hampshire, Ohio, Texas and Pennsylvania’s primaries.

“I’m running to be president of all 50 states,” Clinton said. “I think we ought to keep this going so the people of West Virginia’s voices are heard.”

But that race — one of six remaining contests — is unlikely to decide a 16-month nomination battle that has both polarised and riveted Democratic voters. With 217 delegates yet to be awarded, it is mathematically impossible for either candidate to clinch the nomination.

Obama has 1,849.5 delegates to Clinton’s 1,697, with 2,025 needed to win the nomination.

That means the roughly 800 superdelegates are the ones likely to decide the outcome. Of that total, about 260 remain uncommitted. About a third of the undeclared superdelegates are members of Congress.

On the cusp of making history with his bid to be the US’s first black president, Obama nudged Congressional superdelegates for their support.