State Department Acknowledges Presidential Candidates' Passport Files Breached (3/3)

Richardson dropped out of the Democratic presidential race in January and had previously served in cabinet positions in the Clinton administration.

Political analysts say the Richardson endorsement could help Obama win over more so-called super delegates, Democratic Party activists and office holders who will attend the national nominating convention in August as uncommitted delegates.

Ron Walters is a professor of government and politics at the University of Maryland.

"This comes at a pivotal time because Barack Obama has been suffering from some negative publicity, and for a governor to step up and endorse him gives confidence to the other party leaders that they are moving in the right direction."

The Clinton campaign hopes to stem the flow of super delegates to Obama with a strong showing in the Pennsylvania primary on April 22 where recent polls give her a sizeable lead.

Obama continues to lead the delegate count, but neither contender will be able to secure the party nomination before the August convention without considerable support from uncommitted super delegates.

参考译文：

理查森已于一月份退出了民主党总统候选人的竞选，他先前曾在克林顿政府的内阁任职。

政治分析家认为，理查森对奥巴马的支持将帮助他赢得更多所谓的“超级代表”、民主党积极分子和当权者的支持。而他们将以未表态的代表身份参加8月份举行的全国代表大会。

马里兰大学政府与政治学教授Ron Walters说：“这件事发生的正是时候，因为巴拉克•奥巴马正在受负面宣传的影响，而一名州长这时做出支持他的举动则给党内其他领导人以信心，让他们相信自己正在朝正确的方向努力。”

希拉里的竞选团队将在4月22日的宾夕法尼亚初选中大力造势，希望能够阻止超级代表投向奥巴马。最近，在宾州的民调显示她领先较大的优势。

奥巴马在代表票数上继续领先。但是如果在八月份的民主党全国大会前，双方都没有争取到来自没有表态的超级代表的足够票数的话，谁都不能确保获得党内提名。

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