Hillary Clinton ends presidential bid

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Source: CCTV.com | 06-08-2008 16:05

US senator Hillary Clinton has endorsed senator Barack Obama to be the Democratic US presidential candidate. Clinton suspended her own White House bid less than a week after the Illinois senator secured enough support to win the nomination.

Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton, D-N.Y., speaks at the National Building Museum in Washington, Saturday, June 7, 2008, as she suspends her campaign for president.(AP Photo/Ron Edmonds)

Hillary Clinton's endorsement of Obama is the first step in efforts to reunite the Democratic Party after a divisive five-month nominating battle.

Speaking to a large crowd of supporters at a rally in Washington DC, Clinton says she is throwing her full support behind Obama.

Some 6000 people signed up on her web site to attend the speech at the National Buildings Museum.

Obama will be crowned the Democratic nominee at the party's August nominating convention and will face Republican Senator John McCain in November's election to choose a successor to President George W. Bush.

Obama will be the first black presidential nominee of a major US political party.

Sixty percent of Clinton supporters will vote for Obama, but 17 percent say they will vote for McCain.

Nearly 22 percent said they wouldn't vote at all if Clinton were not the Democrats' nominee.

Editor:Xiong Qu