Electability issue dogs Obama campaign

INDIANAPOLIS, April 24 (UPI) -- Questions about Sen. Barack Obama's electability have been raised after his loss to Sen. Hillary Clinton in Tuesday's Pennsylvania primary, his campaign says.

The freshman Illinois senator leads Clinton in delegates and the popular vote, but the New York senator has won bellwether states such as Pennsylvania, Ohio and Texas, reviving her campaign, The New York Times reported.

Clinton's nearly 10-point win in Pennsylvania capitalized on her strength with blue-collar voters, older voters and white voters -- again raising questions about whether race is in play in the election, the Times said.

"I'm sure there is some of that," said David Axelrod, Obama's senior political adviser.

Axelrod said Clinton's biggest advantage had been among older voters, "and I think there is a general inclination on the part of the older voters to vote for what is more familiar. Here's a guy named Barack Obama, an African-American guy, relatively new. That's a lot of change."

Obama downplayed race while stumping in Indiana.

"Our problem has less to do with white working-class voters," Obama said. "In fact the problem is that -- to the extent that there is a problem -- is that older voters are very loyal to Senator Clinton."

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