Dems Seat Fla., Mich. Delegates as Half-Votes

Raucous hearing leaves Obama 66 delegates from victory
By Neal Colgrass,  Newser Staff
Posted May 31, 2008 6:45 PM CDT
Dems Seat Fla., Mich. Delegates as Half-Votes
Sen. Bill Nelson, D-Fla., speaks before the Democratic National Committee Rules and Bylaws committee hearing in Washington, Saturday, May 31, 2008.   (AP Photo/LM Otero)

Democratic officials voted today to seat Florida and Michigan primary delegates as half-votes, the AP reports. At a boisterous hearing, delayed by nearly 3 hours of private talks, the party seated Florida delegates based on the state's primary vote, with 105 for Clinton and 67 for Obama. The Michigan deal was more complex, giving 69 of the half-votes to Clinton and 59 to Obama.

Obama's delegate count now tallies 2,052, and Clinton's 1,877.5. Obama is 66 votes short of the 2,118 needed to clinch the nomination, a target he could reach in the last three primaries over the next 3 days. (More Democratic Party stories.)

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