Senator Obama today won the support of 2004 Democratic presidential nominee and Massachusetts Senator John Kerry, landing a major victory in the battle for so-called power endorsements. Despite losing the 2004 election to the incumbent President Bush, Kerry nonetheless remains a revered and powerful figure within the traditional Democratic establishment. The Associated Press reported today that Kerry has maintained an e-mail list of more than 3 million supporters, and has single-handedly raised millions of dollars for Democratic candidates around the country since 2004. It was Kerry in 2004 that first launched the then little-known Illinois politician into the spotlight, inviting Obama to deliver the keynote address at the Democratic National Convention in Boston.

With Kerry’s endorsement secured, all eyes are on his senior senate colleague, Ted Kennedy, and former vice president and global activist Al Gore for their nominations. Aides for both Democratic power players have thus far refused to speculate on the leaders’ early inclinations. Both Kennedy and Gore have longstanding - although not always pleasant - ties to the Clinton family.

Senator Obama additionally picked up the critical endorsements of two of Nevada’s largest labor organizations: the 60,000-strong Culinary Workers Union and the 17,500-strong Service Employees International Union (SEIU) of Nevada. Despite the reliability of sample polling being severely crippled in New Hampshire, recent polls show momentum for Obama building in both Nevada and South Carolina - both of which hold their nominating contests in late January.