Washington: Hillary Clinton may be the only woman running for the US presidency, but her top Democratic rival Barack Obama is fighting hard to court women voters who hold more than half of the decisive nominating votes.

Former first lady Clinton has called on prominent women political figures and activists to appear at her rallies, and at the weekend brought out on the campaign trail her daughter Chelsea, 27, and 88-year-old mother Dorothy.

This coincided with Obama wheeling out his own weapon - influential television host Oprah Winfrey, whose talk show is viewed by millions - mainly women. Her speech at his rally on Sunday drew a record crowd for the current White House race.

Since then, Obama has also secured the open backing of three female members of the House of Representatives in as many days. In an apparent bid to bolster his appeal to women voters, his campaign announced that Betty McCollum of Minnesota, Barbara Lee of California and Carol Shea-Porter of New Hampshire all came out in support of him.

Candidates appear to be vying to prove "who's woman enough for the job," said Marie Wilson, founder of the White House Project, an activist group promoting female involvement in politics.

Clinton has already been endorsed by Kim Gandy, president of the nation's biggest women's group, the National Organisation for Women (NOW).
Source : PTI