Obama's Rise Strains Loyalty on Clinton Turf

[elizm]

The New York Times

April 24, 2007
Obama’s Rise Strains Loyalty on Clinton Turf
By RAYMOND HERNANDEZ

Only a few months ago, the vast majority of black elected officials in New York were expected to support the presidential candidacy of Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton. But no longer.

In a series of interviews, a significant number of those officials now say they are undecided about whether to back Mrs. Clinton or one of her main rivals for the Democratic nomination, Senator Barack Obama of Illinois, the only black politician in the race.

The officials described themselves as impressed with the strength of Mr. Obama’s campaign in recent weeks, saying it reflected a grass-roots enthusiasm for Mr. Obama that many noticed among black voters in their own districts. And that could signal trouble for Mrs. Clinton, forcing her to devote precious attention to her home state, where blacks made up 20 percent of the Democratic primary vote in 2004, just as she has had to scramble to keep black support nationwide.

http://www.nytimes.com/2007/04/24/us/politics/24clinton.html?_r=2&hp=&oref=slogin&pagewanted=print