Clinton looks for big West Virginia win

By John Whitesides, Political Correspondent

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Hillary Clinton appeared headed to a big West Virginia victory over front-runner Barack Obama in the Democratic presidential race on Tuesday, although it could be too late to turn around her faltering White House bid.

Clinton has an advantage of at least 20 points in most opinion polls in West Virginia, a bastion of the white working-class voters who have become her strongest supporters in the grueling battle for the Democratic nomination.

But Obama retains a nearly insurmountable advantage in delegates who will select the nominee at the party convention in August. A big win in West Virginia for the cash-strapped Clinton will make barely a dent in Obama's advantage.

Both candidates returned to their jobs in the U.S. Senate on Tuesday morning, where they exchanged a few words while voting for a measure aimed at lowering oil prices. Record-high gas prices have been a key issue in the campaign.

A Clinton victory in West Virginia could raise doubts about Obama's ability to win important swing states in the November election against Republican John McCain, one of her top aides said.

"I think Democrats across the country tomorrow will be asking themselves why Senator Obama, with all of his money, with all of the great press, with voters being told that he is the inevitable nominee, why did Senator Obama lose West Virginia by 15 points or so?" Clinton spokesman Howard Wolfson said on NBC's "Today Show."

West Virginia has just 28 delegates at stake in Tuesday's voting, which ends at 7:30 p.m. EDT (2330 GMT). Results are expected shortly afterward.

Clinton, a New York senator and former first lady, has vowed to keep fighting despite her dwindling prospects and a mounting campaign debt.