Obama Wins Democrats Abroad Global Primary

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The New York Sun

WASHINGTON — Senator Obama won the Democrats Abroad global primary in results announced today, giving him 11 straight victories in the race for the Democratic presidential nomination.

The Illinois senator won the primary in which Democrats living in other countries voted by Internet, mail, and in person, according to results released by the Democrats Abroad, an organization sanctioned by the national party.

Senator Clinton has not won a nominating contest since Super Tuesday, more than two weeks ago.

More than 20,000 American citizens living abroad voted in the primary, which ran from February 5 to February 12. Mr. Obama won about 65% of the vote, according to the results released today.

Voters living in 164 countries cast votes online, while expatriates voted in person in more than 30 countries, at hotels in Australia and Costa Rica, at a pub in Ireland, and at a Starbucks in Thailand. The results took about a week to tabulate as local committees around the globe gathered ballots.

“This really gives Americans an opportunity to participate,” the international chair of Democrats Abroad, Christine Schon Marques, said.

The Italian sports minister, Giovanna Melandri, who has dual citizenship, cast a vote for Mr. Obama in Rome.

“It wasn’t an easy choice for me. I would still love seeing a ticket with Obama and Hillary (Clinton),” Mr. Melandri said. “A drive for change is what is needed in the U.S. and I think that Obama has that drive.”

There is no comparable primary among Republicans, though the GOP has several contests this weekend in American territories, including party caucuses in Puerto Rico Sunday.

The Democrats Abroad controls seven pledged delegates at the party’s national convention this summer. However, the group’s system of dividing the delegates is unique, and could create an anomaly in which Mr. Obama and Mrs. Clinton end up with fractions of delegates.


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