Democrats nominate first black presidential candidate (Roundup)

US News

By Pat Reber Aug 28, 2008, 1:16 GMT

Denver, Colorado - The Democratic Party Wednesday became the first major party to nominate an African-American for president, giving Barack Obama a huge majority nod and a deafening roar of approval to battle with presumptive Republican nominee John McCain. Delegates cheer at the nomination of Illinois Senator Barack Obama as the Democratic presidential candidate at the 2008 Democratic National Convention at the Pepsi Center in Denver, Colorado USA, 27 August 2008. EPA/TANNEN MAURY

Delegates cheer at the nomination of Illinois Senator Barack Obama as the Democratic presidential candidate at the 2008 Democratic National Convention at the Pepsi Center in Denver, Colorado USA, 27 August 2008. EPA/TANNEN MAURYObama's one-time rival, New York Senator Hillary Clinton, helped orchestrate the near-unity nomination by releasing her delegates to vote their conscience and urging them strongly to back Obama and get to work ousting Republicans from the White House. More than 30 states and territories cast their votes in alphabetical order, beginning with Alabama. When Obama had reached a a five-to-one lead over Clinton, her state took the floor and passed the microphone to her. 'Let's declare together in one voice right here, right now that Barack Obama is our candidate,' Clinton said, sending a mass wave of shouts and cheers rolling across the Pepsi Center convention hall. 'I move Senator Barack Obama be selected by acclamation as nominee.' Obama was approved with a resounding cry of 'aye' from more than 4,000 delegates. The delegation from Obama's native state of Hawaii waved American flags. The band struck up Love Train. Dancing and swaying erupted across the auditorium. Nancy Pelosi, speaker of the House of Representatives, told cheering supporters that Obama had accepted the nomination, ahead of his much awaited speech planned before 75,000 people on Thursday night at Invesco Field stadium. The formal nomination ended weeks of nail-biting over the final vote procedure. The details were up in the air just hours before the nomination and subjected to endless media speculation. Obama's campaign initially opposed having Clinton be formally nominated, although she won more than 40 per cent of the primary election and caucus votes. His backers finally gave in to Clinton's supporters, who gathered enough signatures on a petition to place her name in nomination. Mary Boergers, a Maryland state senator who was outspoken in her criticism of any attempt to ignore Clinton's accomplishment for US women, told Deutsche Presse-Agentur dpa that she was satisfied with the outcome. 'It was what we were looking for,' she said. 'She really worked hard getting people to switch to Obama.' At the moment Clinton moved to end the roll call vote, the delegate count stood at 1549.5 for Obama to 341.5 for Clinton. That meant that many Clinton delegates had swung their voice to Obama. It was not clear if a paper tally of all state votes would be made. Clinton met with her 1,800 delegates and pushed them to support Obama, just hours before the Democratic Party's delegates were to make the formal choice between two historic firsts - an African- American or woman presidential candidate. 'I am here to release you as my delegates,' Clinton said, sparking boos and cries of 'no' from the crowd. Senator Obama, 47, had already secured the centre-left party's nomination after the long primary election season, so there was little suspense over the outcome. Party officials were determined, however, to weld an image of unity. The state-by-state roll-call vote is anchored in party tradition, and had become largely ceremonial for unity candidates like Hillary's husband, former two-term president Bill Clinton. The last major contested Democratic convention was 1980, when delegates chose former president Jimmy Carter over the liberal lion of the party, Senator Edward Kennedy. The roll call procedure offers states the chance to shamelessly boast their regional pride, history and sports teams and mobilize voters for the November 4 general elections. The American Samoa delegation wore elaborate native robes, while Guam delegates dressed in red dresses and trousers splattered with white flowers. Georgia boasted of being the birthplace of Martin Luther King Jr. An Iraq war veteran announced Iowa's vote, saying he was wearing the 'same combat boots I wore in Iraq.' Most Clinton delegates like Irene Kimball, 65, from Ludlow, Massachusetts, said they would follow Clinton's lead and work for Obama because of the failing economy, soaring prices and the need to end the war in Iraq. Clinton's efforts to bring unity to the party impressed Angela Alsobrooks, 37, a Clinton delegate from Upper Marlboro, Maryland. 'How people act in defeat says everything about your character,' she said. Others at the final meeting remained very bitter. Raymond, 47, a delegate from California who would only give his first name, said the vote by acclamation would be a 'stab in the back for 18 million people' who had voted for her.