Obama touts his own Latino support

While the presidential campaign of Sen. Hillary Clinton touts such high-profile Latino endorsements as Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa, Sen. Barack Obama is attempting to make his own inroads with the Latino community.

Obama's campaign announced on Friday that has picked up the endorsement of Federico Pena, former mayor of Denver and who served as energy secretary under former President Clinton.

“I look forward to working with Federico to bring about the transformation this country desperately needs. His vision for change as Mayor of Denver and his strong record on energy and transportation issues brings invaluable experience to our team,” Obama said.

Pena said he decided to back Obama because of the change he would bring.

"The challenges we are facing in Colorado, in the Hispanic community and across the country are formidable and it is time for bold and thoughtful leadership in the White House, ” Pena said.

Prior to his appointment as Energy Secretary, Pena served as Transportation Secretary for Clinton.