Clinton sews up Democratic nomination, Sanders refuses to concede

Hillary Clinton looked to have secured the Democratic nomination for the United States presidential election early on Tuesday, with at least one count of delegates putting her over the line.

The 68-year-old had 1,812 pledged delegates and 572 superdelegates according to a count by CNN, putting her at 2,384 total delegates.

A Democratic nominee requires 2,383 to secure the nomination.

If the count is officially confirmed by the party, Clinton will be the first woman in the 240-year history of the US to lead a major party into a presidential election.

“We are on the brink of a historic, historic unprecedented moment but we still have work to do,” she told an audience in California on Monday.

“We have six elections tomorrow and we are going to fight hard for every single vote, especially right here in California.”

Her last standing rival for the nomination, socialist Bernie Sanders, refused to bow out, with his office expressing its displeasure at news organisations for counting delegates before the official vote.

“It is unfortunate that the media, in a rush to judgement, are ignoring the Democratic National Committee’s clear statement that it is wrong to count the votes of superdelegates before they actually vote this summer,” said Sanders’ campaign manager Michael Briggs.

He said Clinton did not, and will not have the requisite number of pledged delegates to secure the nomination.

“She will be dependent on superdelegates who do not vote until 25 July and who can change their minds between now and then.”

On the Republican side of the fence, controversial candidate Donald Trump had all but secured the presidential nomination in recent weeks.

He has a total of 1,239 pledged delegates, with 1,237 needed for the nomination and 334 still available.

His opponents - Ted Cruz and John Kasich - had already conceded, with 559 and 161 delegates respectively.