The Story:
The campaign for the Democratic nomination for President has changed considerably in recent days, due first to the South Carolina primary on February 28th and then the “Super Tuesday” primary in 14 states on March 3. The remaining active candidates are: Vice President Biden; Senator Bernie Sanders; and Senator Elizabeth Warren.
Super Tuesday Results:
On Tuesday, Biden won most of the states at issue. His biggest prize was Texas. (The result in California is still unclear as these words are written.) He has now taken the lead in the delegate count, a situation that was unthinkable until the counting got underway. Massachusetts, Minnesota, Alabama, Arkansas, North Carolina, Tennessee, Virginia, and Oklahoma all went clearly to Biden.
Sanders won Colorado, Utah, and Vermont (his home state). That is a much shorter roll call of victories than his campaign had expected.
Neither Elizabeth Warren nor Mike Bloomberg won any states. Bloomberg withdrew from the campaign on Wednesday.
The Thing to Know:
This is a dramatic turnaround for Biden, whose campaign was flailing through the end of last year and the early weeks of this one. Credit for the turnaround goes to Biden’s long-standing ties to influential people in the African-American communities of the states involved, especially Congressman Jim Clyburn (SC), the senior ranking African-American on Capitol Hill.
