WASHINGTON: The U.S. presidential race took off with Hillary Clinton finally jumping into the fray with an aura of inevitability, but that analysts suggested may turn out to be the former secretary of state's biggest handicap.

In her second bid to break the glass ceiling and return to the White House, the former first lady chose a low key video message on social media to announce her run Sunday before heading to Iowa, the state which traditionally kicks off the primaries.

The first official event of her 2016 presidential campaign was a roundtable discussion with four students and three educators in an automotive technology classroom at a community college. There she declared her desire to "begin a conversation" with Americans on how she could "be the champion who goes to bat for Americans."

Low key or not, Clinton's entry has electrified the somewhat somnolent presidential race and generated media attention far and wide, including India, with which she has a long history going back to her first visit as first lady in 1995, unlike any other candidate.

As Alyssa Ayres, a fellow at the Council on Foreign Relations wrote in a recent blog post "First and foremost, she sees India as a crucial part of U.S. strategy in a world increasingly centred on Asia, where, in her words, 'the future of politics will be decided.'"

"As secretary of state her focus on rebalancing U.S. foreign policy toward Asia contained a strong emphasis on expanding ties with India, " she noted.

Within her own Democratic Party, Clinton is miles ahead of her likely rivals - none of whom have officially declared their intention to run.

According to Time magazine former Maryland Governor Martin O'Malley is polling at 1 percent and liberal Senator Bernie Sanders is at 4 percent compared with Clinton's 66 percent.
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Source: IANS