HILLSBORO, Ore. — Democrat Hillary Rodham Clinton on Saturday strengthened her pitch to allow disputed primaries in Michigan and Florida to be counted in the nominating contest, noting the vote totals had been officially recognized in each state.
“Some say their votes should be ignored and the popular vote in Michigan and Florida should be discounted. Well, I have a different view,” Clinton said at a rally here.
“The popular vote in Florida and Michigan has already been counted,” she said. “It was determined by election results, it was certified by election officials in each state, it’s been officially tallied by the secretary of state in each state, and the question is whether those 2.3 million Democrats will be honored and their delegates seated by the Democratic Party.”
Both the Michigan and Florida primaries were nullified after they were moved into January in violation of national Democratic Party rules. The party voted to strip both states of their delegates, and all the candidates, including Clinton and rival Barack Obama, signed a pledge not to campaign in either state.
Obama and several other Democratic candidates also removed their names from the Michigan primary ballot.
Both states saw record turnout in their primaries, and the former first lady won both contests. Her campaign has pressed hard for the results to be recognized.
Clinton’s latest comments came a day after Michigan Democrats announced there would be no do-over of that state’s Jan. 15 primary, vastly dimming the New York senator’s chances of catching Obama in the popular vote and in pledged delegates.
This was Clinton’s first campaign visit to Oregon, whose primary is May 20. The state holds a largely vote-by-mail primary with ballots mailed starting April 28.
At a rally in Eugene, an Obama supporter asked whether Clinton feared her criticisms of the Illinois senator would damage his chances if he became the nominee.
“I obviously see it differently,” Clinton replied. “For those who are new to politics, you can take very personally anything anybody says.”
