Obama narrows Clinton lead in superdelegates

[Dos Equis]

Fat lady is singing.

Obama narrows Clinton lead in superdelegates
     
WASHINGTON (CNN) -- Sen. Barack Obama on Friday closed in on Sen. Hillary Clinton's lead among superdelegates, the Democratic officials who hold the balance of power in determining the party's presidential nominee.

The Obama campaign announced the support of four new superdelegates -- including a previous Clinton backer.

California Democratic National Committee member and superdelegate Ed Espinoza endorsed the senator from Illinois Friday, according to the Obama camp.

Rep. Peter DeFazio of Oregon also told The Oregonian newspaper that he will support Obama's bid. Oregon voters are in the middle of primary voting, which takes place through the mail.

Rep. Donald Payne, a New Jersey Democrat and an early Clinton supporter, told The (Newark) Star-Ledger that he was switching to Obama.

John Gage, president of the American Federation of Government Employees, also said he is backing Obama. He had been uncommitted. His union, which is affiliated with the AFL-CIO, said it represents more than 600,000 workers.

Espinoza, Payne, DeFazio and Gage are superdelegates -- party officials, elected representatives and activists who are free to vote the way they want or to change their minds after pledging to a candidate.

There are now more superdelegates than pledged delegates among those who remain undecided. A flood of endorsements from superdelegates could virtually end the Democratic race.

Neither candidate has the 2,025 delegates needed for the nomination. Obama has 1,856 total delegates, 169 delegates short of clinching the Democratic nod, and Clinton has 1,691, according to a CNN survey.

Obama holds a commanding lead in the number of pledged delegates awarded from primaries and caucuses -- 1,592 to Clinton's 1,424.

The latest announcements narrow Clinton's lead in superdelegates to three -- 267 to 264. At the year's start, she led by more than 100 superdelegates.

. . .

http://www.cnn.com/2008/POLITICS/05/09/dems.wrap/index.html

[Dos Equis]

May 11, 12:00 AM EDT
Obama overtakes lead in superdelegates for first time

By STEPHEN OHLEMACHER
Associated Press Writer
 
WASHINGTON (AP) -- Barack Obama erased Hillary Rodham Clinton's once-imposing lead among superdelegates Saturday when he added more endorsements from the group of Democrats who will decide the party's nomination for president.

Obama added superdelegates from Utah, Ohio and Arizona, as well as two from the Virgin Islands who had previously backed Clinton. The additions enabled Obama to surpass Clinton's total for the first time in the campaign. He had picked up nine endorsements Friday.

The milestone is important because Clinton would need to win over the superdelegates by a wide margin to claim the nomination. They are a group that Clinton owned before the first caucus, when she was able to cash in on the popularity of the Clinton brand among the party faithful.

Those party insiders, however, have been steadily streaming to Obama since he started posting wins in early voting states.

"I always felt that if anybody establishes himself as the clear leader, the superdelegates would fall in line," said Don Fowler, a former chairman of the Democratic National Committee.

"It is perceived that he is the leader," said Fowler, a superdelegate from South Carolina who supports Clinton. "The trickle is going to become an avalanche."

Superdelegates are the party and elected officials who will automatically attend the Democratic national convention this August in Denver. They can support whomever they choose, regardless of what happens in the primaries.

They are key because neither Obama nor Clinton can win the nomination without them.

. . .
 
http://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/stories/O/OBAMA_ENDORSEMENT?SITE=HIHAD&SECTION=HOME&TEMPLATE=DEFAULT

[Tre]

Clinton's final goal is to ensure that Obama doesn't win so that she can say "I told you so."