Debra Bartoshevich of Waterford was stripped of her delegate status Friday.

The administrative committee of the Wisconsin Democratic Party voted unanimously in a conference call to remove delegate credentials from Bartoshevich, who was elected in May to be a delegate for Sen. Hillary Clinton.

Bartoshevich made headlines in June when news reports indicated she would support Sen. John McCain if Sen. Barack Obama was the Democratic nominee.

"My intention was always to go to the convention to support Hillary Clinton," Bartoshevich said during the call. "I still believe in her, I believe in her campaign, and I would like to maintain my status as a supporter of Hillary Clinton."

Bartoshevich will be replaced by Marilyn Nemeth of Racine, who was the next highest vote-getter for Clinton at the May caucus.

"I'm sorry for her, but I'm happy for me," Nemeth said after the conference call.

Nemeth, a member of the committee who abstained from the vote, said the issue wasn't about Bartoshevich's support for candidates, but was a matter of following the rules.

"I think they brought up all the points that had to be brought up," she said.

Jason Rae, who filed the party's challenge of Bartoshevich's credentials, said in his presentation that Bartoshevich had violated party rules by saying she would support McCain.

"Ms. Bartoshevich is an active supporter of Sen. McCain's campaign," Rae said. "Her public statements of support for Sen. John McCain show that she is supporting a nominee other than that of the Democratic Party."

The specific articles he referred to state that delegates "will not publicly support or campaign for any candidate for President or Vice President other than the nominees of the Democratic National Convention," and that delegates are presumed to be "bona fide Democrats who are faithful to the interests, welfare, and success of the Democratic Party of the United States."

In her presentation, Bartoshevich said no one from the state Democratic Party had called her to check on the validity of the news reports.

"How do you know if it wasn't a momentary exclamation at the time?" she asked.

Bartoshevich said she never publicly endorsed McCain. When asked point-blank if she would vote for the eventual nominee of the Democratic Party, Bartoshevich replied that she would not comment on who she would vote for in the fall, and that she would vote for Clinton at the convention.

In the sometimes testy conference call, committee members expressed their disapproval of Bartoshevich's statements. Dottie LeClair brought up Bartoshevich's statement that the McCain campaign had reached out to her.

"You reached right back and hugged them, and I have a problem with that," LeClair said.

"I started a lovefest, is that what you're saying?" Bartoshevich replied.

In another exchange, Les Nakamoto criticized Bartoshevich's use of the phrase "Wisconsin Democrat Party," saying she was taking talking points from Rush Limbaugh.

In response to criticism, Bartoshevich said it was hard for her to change loyalties from one candidate to another quickly.

"Even though we are Democrats and we support Democrats, I'm not a person that I can just flip my switch," Bartoshevich said. "It's very difficult for me in two weeks, or even less than that, to switch my support and be 120 percent behind somebody."

After the call, Joe Wineke, chairman of the Democratic Party of Wisconsin, said the vote was unanimous because the members of the committee felt strongly that it is an honor to be a delegate.

"I don't feel good about this, it's not fun to do that to somebody," Wineke said. "She was given several opportunities to say that she was not supporting John McCain and she didn't.

"It's not a good thing, but it's over."