Democrats approve seating half of Michigan delegation

WASHINGTON, May 31 (Reuters) - A Democratic Party panel backed a compromise plan to seat the delegates from Michigan with a half-vote each on Saturday in a blow to U.S. presidential candidate Hillary Clinton.

The panel voted 19-8 to try to resolve the disputed contest won by Clinton over rival Barack Obama by giving Clinton a net gain of five delegate votes in the state. She will have 69 pledged delegates to Obama's 59, giving her 34.5 voting delegates to Obama's 29.5.

The state's superdelegates also will get half votes.

Clinton had pushed for seating the delegation in full and not granting delegates to Obama, who had withdrawn his name from the Michigan ballot because of a dispute between the state and the national party over the timing of the contest. (Editing by Patricia Wilson and Peter Cooney) (To read more about the U.S. political campaign, visit Reuters "Tales from the Trail: 2008" online at blogs.reuters.com/trail08/) (Editing by Peter Cooney)