Most Dems want Clinton to keep running, conditionally

A new poll reveals that many Democrats believe Hillary Clinton should stay in the race if she wins in either Ohio or Texas.

Published March 4, 2008 2:46PM (EST)

Apparently that gloomy media drumbeat isn't having much of an effect -- a new poll reveals that, if she wins in either Ohio or Texas, a majority of Democrats believe Hillary Clinton should remain in the race for her party's presidential nomination.

The poll, conducted by ABC News and the Washington Post, shows that if Clinton wins in Ohio or Texas, 67 percent of Democrats believe she should stay in the race. Twenty-nine percent believe she should drop out in that situation. Even 46 percent of Barack Obama's supporters believe Clinton should continue running in this eventuality; 51 percent disagree. (Ninety-one percent of Clinton's supporters would want her to stay in.)

However, if Clinton loses both states, support for a continued run drops off dramatically, with only 45 percent of respondents in support, and 51 percent opposed.

Atlantic blogger Marc Ambinder has Obama spokesman Bill Burton's response: "The Clinton campaign said this race was all about delegates and that they would be tied or ahead by morning. But despite the 20-point lead in Ohio and Texas that Senator Clinton had just two weeks ago, we will still be well ahead in delegates tonight and they will have failed at achieving their plainly stated goals. They have floated proposal after proposal to try to subvert the will of Democratic voters and retrospectively change the rules of the nominating process, but the bottom line is that it will still be virtually impossible for them to catch up in delegates after tonight."


By Alex Koppelman

Alex Koppelman is a staff writer for Salon.

MORE FROM Alex Koppelman


Related Topics ------------------------------------------

2008 Elections Hillary Rodham Clinton War Room