Hillary Clinton urges shopping voters to choose her

Apr 22, 2008, 0:41 GMT

Harrisburg, Pennsylvania - In the last hours before voters go to the polls in the crucial Pennsylvania primary, Senator Hillary Clinton on Monday urged those 'still shopping' for a candidate to pick her.

'Some are here probably still shopping. You know, you can shop all the way up until the polls close tomorrow,' Clinton told about 1,000 people gathered at a small arena in Pennsylvania's state capital.

She urged voters to think of the election Tuesday as a job interview and to consider the experience and resumes of each candidate.

But few undecided voters remain, according to opinion surveys, and most of those crowded into the hall were supporters who had already settled on Clinton. Many just hoped to catch a glimpse of the former first lady or cheer her to stay in the race, despite lagging behind Senator Barack Obama in the delegate count needed to secure the Democratic Party's nomination.

'I don't think she should stop. If it's close she has to keep going,' said Melba Smith, 56, a Republican who cannot vote in the exclusive intra-party vote but hopes to cast a ballot for Clinton in November general elections. 'I wouldn't quit if I were her.'

Clinton is widely expected to win Tuesday's primary, but her lead in opinion polls over Senator Barack Obama has dwindled from double digits last month to about 5 percentage points in the final week.

If she fails to win big and comes out with only a marginal victory in the populous, north-eastern state, she will likely face renewed pressure to quit the race in the interest of party unity.

Obama holds a small but significant lead in the number of delegates needed to capture the centre-left Democratic nomination in August at the convention in Denver, Colorado. After Tuesday, contests remain to be held in seven states and two US territories.