Obama grabs superdelegates, undecideds

Nedra Pickler

associated press writer

Barack Obama’s march toward the Democratic presidential nomination picked up support from four more superdelegates Wednesday, pushing him ever closer to victory over Hillary Rodham Clinton — even as their primary marathon staggered on.

She added two superdelegates herself in what has become the last big contest as their race winds toward a finish.

There are just 217 delegates to be chosen in the final six primaries, and neither candidate can win enough of them to claim final victory. Meanwhile, 265 additional superdelegates have yet to be claimed, and their support will be the deciding factor.

Though Obama padded his delegate lead in Tuesday’s primaries, most uncommitted superdelegates still want to remain on the sidelines. The Associated Press interviewed more than 70 undeclared superdelegates or their representatives Wednesday, and many said they don’t want to get involved until the voting ends June 3.

However, the comments of some of the uncommitteds were not encouraging for Clinton.
“I’m just wondering about the viability of Clinton’s campaign at this point,” said Laurie Weahkee, an add-on delegate from New Mexico. “I really want to hear from her more about if she wants to stay in the race — if the reason remains very concrete.”

Pennsylvania Rep. Mike Doyle said Clinton’s pitch to superdelegates has been that she can win the popular vote, but that was undercut when Obama netted more than 200,000 popular votes in the Tuesday contests.