WASHINGTON (AFP) — Democrat Barack Obama's White House bid Monday won support from the Senate's oldest and longest-serving member, Robert Byrd, who acclaimed his freshman colleague as a "shining young statesman."
Byrd, 90, was one of five Democratic "superdelegates" to endorse the Illinois senator Monday and add new momentum to his drive to capture the party's presidential nomination from Hillary Clinton.
The distinguished dean of the Senate went public with his endorsement despite his state of West Virginia voting overwhelmingly for the former first lady last week.
Both Clinton and Obama were "extraordinary individuals," Byrd said in a statement.
But he stressed: "I believe that Barack Obama is a shining young statesman, who possesses the personal temperament and courage necessary to extricate our country from this costly misadventure in Iraq, and to lead our nation at this challenging time in history.
"Barack Obama is a noble-hearted patriot and humble Christian, and he has my full faith and support," said Byrd, who has served in the Senate since 1959 and has long since renounced his youthful dalliance with the Ku Klux Klan, the secret, white supremacist group -- known for their distinctive white robes and pointy hats -- which has terrorized blacks and other minority groups since immediately after the US Civil War.
The African-American Obama, 46, is homing in on the Democratic nomination with just five contests left including Kentucky and Oregon on Tuesday.
But New York Senator Clinton, 60, is vowing to stay in the race despite a steady drift of superdelegates -- Democratic leaders who are free to vote for either candidate -- to her rival's camp.
Obama Monday also secured endorsements from two superdelegates in Alaska and one each from Kansas and Washington state.
Obama's campaign said he was now 109 delegates away from the total of 2,025 needed to secure the Democratic nomination and run against presumed Republican nominee John McCain.
A tally by the independent website RealClearPolitics had Obama 115 delegates short, with a total of 1,910 against Clinton's 1,720.
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