Clinton to Leave Race Tonight, AP Says

Sen. Hillary Clinton (D., N.Y.) will appear tonight in New York City following the results of the Montana and South Dakota primaries.

The Associated Press reports that Clinton plans to concede the race tonight. If true, it signifies Sen. Barack Obama (D., Ill.) will have reached the magic number of 2,118 delegates. The Clinton campaign released a short statement saying the candidate will not concede this evening.

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D., Calif.) and Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D., Nev.), have been pushing members of Congress to endorse a candidate after the election. These superdelegates have chosen Obama over Clinton by a wide-margin following Super Tuesday.

The report -- from unnamed campaign sources -- says that staff will be paid through June 15 and then let go. Those sources said Clinton had stayed in the campaign to increase her leverage with Obama. The advisers told the AP that Clinton has made a strategic decision to not formally end her campaign, giving her leverage to negotiate with Obama on various matters including a possible vice presidential nomination for her. The sources also said Clinton wants to press Obama on issues to focus on in the fall, such as health care.