Two key black political leaders in South Carolina who backed John Edwards in 2004 said Tuesday they are now supporting Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton’s bid for the Democratic presidential nomination.

State Sens. Robert Ford and Darrell Jackson told The Associated Press they believe Hillary Clinton is the only Democrat who can win the presidency.

Both said they had been courted by Illinois Sen. Barack Obama; Ford said Obama winning the primary would drag down the rest of the party.

“Everybody else on the ballot [would be] doomed. Every Democratic candidate running on that ticket would lose because he’s black and he’s at the top of the ticket,” Ford said.

“We’d lose the House, the Senate, the governors, everything. I’m a gambling man. I love Obama. But I’m not going to kill myself.”

Apparently, these two aren’t alone in their assessment. Last month, a CBS News poll estimated that 52 percent of black Democrats would back Hillary Clinton, compared to 28 percent for Obama.

Ford was swayed by calls from both Hillary Clinton and her most influential ally - the Big Dog himself, former President Bill Clinton.

Solid support in Charleston, S.C., one of the key regions in the state with a significant black Democratic voting population, which Ford should provide, will inevitably help the Clinton campaign.

Jackson, who also is the minister of a large church in the state’s capital city, said John Edwards — a South Carolina native who won the state’s Democratic primary three years ago — had his chance.

“I feel as if he’s had his opportunity,” Jackson said.

The endorsements come just days before Obama and Clinton campaign in the state for the first time as official candidates in the presidential campaign.

Support from black voters is key in South Carolina, where 49 percent of the Democratic presidential primary vote came from blacks in 2004. The Palmetto State will host the first Southern primary for both the GOP and the Democrats in the 2008 race.

Clinton’s campaign spokesman, Mo Elleithee, said they were happy to have Ford and Jackson’s support.

“We’re grateful we’re starting to get the support of some key leaders,” Elleithee said.