With primary over, Udall says he’ll back Obama

Now that Barack Obama has won the Democratic presidential primary, New Mexico’s only superdelegate who didn’t pick a side in the hotly contested race before it was over says he’ll back the party’s nominee.

“I want to congratulate (Obama) on securing the nomination,” U.S. Rep. Tom Udall said today in an interview. “I think he has been an extraordinary campaigner. He’s brought many new people into the process and he’ll be a strong nominee for us.”

While New Mexico’s 11 other superdelegates all pledged their support for Obama or Hillary Clinton before the primary race was over, Udall repeatedly refused to comment on the race beyond saying he was uncommitted. In today’s interview, he had kind words for Clinton, calling her “somebody who really connects with working-class families.”

“We’ve seen that play out here in New Mexico,” Udall said, referring to Clinton’s narrow win in the state’s Feb. 5 caucus.

The discussion now is about whether Clinton should be Obama’s running mate. Udall gave no clues about his opinion, just as he gave no clues about who he supported in the presidential primary until it was over.

“I just think that’s a very personal choice for the nominee,” Udall said. “We’ve seen presidents and vice presidents in modern history have close relationships, and I would leave that to them.”

Udall said his goal is to help the party win the presidential race in November. Udall is the Democratic nominee for New Mexico’s open seat in the U.S. Senate.

“The role I really want to play at this point is to be a uniter, work with all members of the Democratic Party to see that we go into the fall united and put on a good campaign,” he said.