Denver, Colorado  - Democratic activists who were disappointed over Senator Hillary Clinton's loss of her party's nomination called Republican John McCain's vice presidential choice strategically "brilliant."

McCain named as his running mate Alaska Governor Sarah Palin - a young woman unionist and mother of five who has a son heading to Iraq with the US army.

"It's a brilliant, spectacular move," Mary Boergers, a Maryland state senator and unhappy Democratic delegate for Clinton told Deutsche Presse-Agentur dpa.

Denver, Colorado  - Hillary Clinton Wednesday called on her delegates to support Barack Obama, just hours before the Democratic Party's delegates were to make a formal and symbolic choice between two historic firsts - an African-American or woman presidential candidate on Wednesday.

"I am here to release you as my delegates," Clinton said in a final meeting with her about 1,800 delegates, sparking boos and cries of "no" from the crowd of still-bitter supporters.

Denver, Colorado  - Just hours before Democratic delegates are to make a formal and symbolic choice between two historic firsts for their party - an African-American or woman presidential candidate - uncertainty prevailed Wednesday about just how the vote at the party convention would play out later Wednesday.

Denver, Colorado - Denver police arrested 13 anti-abortion protesters Tuesday during a sit-down protest near the Pepsi Centre where Democrats are meeting to nominate Senator Barack Obama as their presidential candidate, according to a report in the Denver Post.

"A vote for Obama and Biden is a vote to sustain legalized child killing," one of the protestors, Randall Terry, was quoted as shouting. "The police are enforcing the laws of obstructing traffic yet they won't enforce the laws against the killing of children."

Denver, Colorado - Demanding equal pay for equal work and affordable health care for all, Senate women took the podium Tuesday at the Democratic convention to offer their support for Barack Obama's presidential campaign.

New York Senator Hillary Clinton, who narrowly lost the centre- left party's nomination to Obama, introduced the senators in a video appearance and is to make her own appeal for party unity later in the evening.

Denver, Colorado  - Senator Hillary Clinton, who brought her presidential bid within a hair's breadth of winning her party, was expected to appeal later Tuesday for her 18 million backers to get solidly behind rival Barack Obama in the general elections.

But ahead of the much-awaited speech before 4,400 Democratic Party delegates in Denver on Tuesday, many supporters continued to be unhappy about a prospect of forced unanimity and were trying to force a state-by-state roll-call vote the next evening.