WASHINGTON — More than a dozen members of New York’s congressional delegation gathered on Capitol Hill to endorse Senator Obama for president, pre-empting by two days an event planned by their favorite daughter, Senator Clinton.

Led by the delegation’s dean, Rep. Charles Rangel of Harlem, the lawmakers applauded Mrs. Clinton and spoke out for Mr. Obama a day after they privately rebuffed the former first lady’s attempt to draw out the race another week.

But the press conference, held in front of the headquarters of the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee, underscored the lingering unease surrounding the conclusion of the hard-fought primary battle and Mrs. Clinton’s refusal to concede the race immediately and endorse Mr. Obama. She announced Wednesday night that she would hold a rally in Washington on Saturday to throw her support to Mr. Obama, but her New York supporters went ahead with their own event yesterday because they said they couldn’t make it back to the capital this weekend.

Mr. Rangel began the briefing with a nod to Mrs. Clinton and delivered the endorsement of her rival in a roundabout way.

“We come here collectively to endorse the decision that has been made by our fearless leader, who comes as a member of the state of New York that makes us so proud, and we’re here to laud her efforts and what she is about to do,” Mr. Rangel said.

He called Mr. Obama “an outstanding candidate” and said that “in our collective opinion, he has won the nomination.”

Several lawmakers in attendance said they would like to see Mrs. Clinton as Mr. Obama’s running mate, but they tried to avoid statements that would be seen as pressuring the presumptive nominee to choose her.

“I think she’d be a terrific partner in government,” Mr. Rangel said when asked about the possibility. But he quickly added: “I should not have even said that.”

Mrs. Clinton had told her supporters that she would be open to the vice presidency, but her campaign issued a statement yesterday insisting she was not seeking the position.

Nearly every Democrat in the state delegation — all of whom supported Mrs. Clinton — attended the press conference yesterday. One vocal Clinton supporter who was absent was Rep. Anthony Weiner, who represents parts of Brooklyn and Queens. A spokesman said he would be at Mrs. Clinton’s event on Saturday.

Mr. Rangel did not specify why the lawmakers could not make it back to Washington for an event aimed at celebrating Mrs. Clinton’s historic candidacy and unifying a divided Democratic Party behind Mr. Obama.

“It’s shabbos. We’re not here,” Rep. Gary Ackerman shouted as Mr. Rangel was pressured for a response. The answer seemed fine for Mr. Rangel. “It’s a Jewish holiday. That’s enough being said,” he said.

While the lawmakers were steadfast in their praise of Mrs. Clinton, some had clearly felt pressure to rally swiftly behind Mr. Obama, who carried a few congressional districts in the city. Reps. Gregory Meeks of Queens, Edolphus Towns of Brooklyn, and Yvette Clarke of Brooklyn had all endorsed Mr. Obama in a statement Wednesday night.

“Of course I’ve heard people who said, ‘Listen, we need you to get behind Barack Obama,'” Ms. Clarke said, though she added that she also heard from constituents who thanked her for sticking with Mrs. Clinton.

She said she didn’t fault Mrs. Clinton for waiting to exit the race and endorse Mr. Obama. “She just needed to take a step back and figure out what planet she was on,” Ms. Clarke said.