USA: Clinton fights on after West Virginia victory despite Obama's lead in delegates

Record ID: 347880

  • Title: USA: Clinton fights on after West Virginia victory despite Obama's lead in delegates
  • Date: 15th May 2008
  • Summary: NEWSPAPER HEADLINE
  • Embargoed: 30th May 2008 13:00
  • Keywords:
  • Location: Usa
  • Country: USA
  • Topics: Domestic Politics
  • Reuters ID: LVA5FI5DBCPVA0R1VAMY2YGLKP9A
  • Story Text: Hillary Clinton's landslide West Virginia victory barely made a dent in Barack Obama's lead in the Democratic presidential race on Wednesday (May 14), but Clinton says the race to be the Democratic presidential nominee is not over and vowed to push on through the last five contests.

    "I am more determined than ever to carry on this campaign until everyone has had a chance to make their voices heard," the New York senator and former first lady said on Wednesday in a plea for donations e-mailed to her supporters.
    Obama retains an almost unassailable advantage in delegates who will select the Democratic nominee at the party convention in August. He gained the support on Wednesday of two more superdelegates, who are free to back any candidate.
    But Clinton argues she has the best chance of beating Republican nominee, John McCain in November.
    It is clear West Virginia's demographics were in Clinton's favour, with a population that is 95 per cent white, mostly blue collar and largely culturally conservative -- a group in past primaries with which she has shown strength. But surveys suggest West Virginians' attitudes to race may also have helped Clinton win. According to exit polls Obama, who would be the first black U.S. president, won support from fewer than one-quarter of white voters without a college degree. That repeats a pattern seen in some other big Obama losses, including Ohio and Pennsylvania.
    A poll by ABC said that barely more than half of West Virginia Democratic primary voters said they would vote for Obama in November if he is the party's nominee. While just 32 per cent of those voters said they would support Obama against Republican nominee John McCain. Analysts say these results illustrate his renewed trouble winning white working-class support and could raise warning flags for November.
    But while thousands of Clinton supporters in Virginia were shouting for her to fight on after her victory, they deny race is an issue.

    "If he makes it, then that's the people's choice right. So I just won't vote at all. I mean, I don't have nothing against him," said Karen White, a Clinton supporter who would not vote for Obama in a general election.
    Senior party officials are beginning to refer to Obama as the Democrats 'likely nominee'. Obama himself however, is far more cautious.
    Campaigning in Missouri on Tuesday (May 13) he told a rally
    "There is a lot of talk these days about how the Democratic Party is divided. But I'm not worried, I've been campaigning in 46 states over the last 15 months all across America. And I'm not worried about your Democratic Party being divided come November. And the reason is there's too much that unites us as Democrats."
    But West Virginia has provided a good example of one of the hurdles the Illinois Senator will face if he becomes the Democrat's presidential candidate.

    "I suspect his campaign has not figured out how to campaign in rural areas and if they figured that out in Kentucky and Oregon and some other places and then come back here in the general and they spend time shaking hands and visiting fire halls and encouraging people to open up and let people understand that he can be trusted, that he is one of them," said Dawn Miller, an Editorial writer with the Charlston Gazette.

    "If he can show he's one of them," she said, "I think he'll shake off this sort of elitist pose that he has unfortunately struck lately."
    And even under the best scenario for Clinton, Obama would still lead the Democratic race by about 100 delegates, with fewer than 250 superdelegates left to declare their support.
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