Democratic icon Geraldine Ferraro, who in 1984 was the first woman ever to run on a national ticket as vice-president, has resigned from Hillary Clinton’s campaign finance committee after a race row sparked by her comments about Barack Obama.

Campaign sources have confirmed that Ferraro has stepped down late Wednesday. She had remarked that Obama was only in such a high-profile political position because he was an African-American.

Obama replied by saying that her assertions were “ridiculous” and “wrongheaded” and he pushed on to eject Ferraro from Clinton’s camp.

Ferraro, who blazed a historic path in becoming the Democratic party’s vice presidential nominee in 1984, said in an interview with a California newspaper: “If Obama was a white man, he would not be in this position.”

“And if he was a woman – of any colour – he would not be in this position. He happens to be very lucky to be who he is. And the country is caught up in the concept,” Ferraro said.

Ferraro later defended her comments in a series of television interviews, repeatedly saying she was herself a victim of racism.