Joe Biden continues his ascent to the Democratic presidential nomination by winning three major states over Bernie Sanders, including the coveted Michigan.
Six states were at stake on Tuesday evening, and quickly the results clearly demonstrated that Joe Biden had won favour with Democratic supporters in Missouri and Mississippi. These two important states represent 68 and 36 delegates respectively.
The key duel was however played out in Michigan, where Bernie Sanders had high hopes of victory since he had caused some surprise against Hillary Clinton in 2016. Michigan was the springboard to propel the senator’s campaign from Vermont.
The scenario was not repeated, however, since ex-vice-president Joe Biden had the best of his opponent. A gain which comes to deal a heavy blow to the chances of Bernie Sanders to win the Democratic nomination.
Joe Biden spoke to the media in Philadelphia, near the home of his local team. He called the results “another good evening” and “one step closer to the return of decency, dignity and honour to the White House”.
The nomination contestant reached out to supporters of his opponent, thanking Mr. Sanders and his team for “their inexhaustible energy and passion.” He called on them to rally behind a common goal: “to beat Donald Trump”.
These three new victories mark a complete turnaround for Joe Biden, whose campaign seemed on the verge of collapse just two weeks ago.
Bernie Sanders had then started the race for delegates with strong results in Iowa, New Hampshire and Nevada before seeing his opponent bounce in South Carolina, then with a good performance at the “Super Tuesday” week last.
Bernie Sanders could still keep his campaign on track by winning the support of delegates from Idaho, North Dakota or Washington State. The results have not yet been released.
Missouri and Mississippi
Missouri is among the most conservative of the six states grouped together to hold their primary on March 10. All but one of the state’s elected officials are Republicans.
The candidate who will be chosen by the Democratic camp will have more work to do to take Missouri from current President Donald Trump next November.
Trump won the state by 19 percentage points in 2016.
Joe Biden campaigned in Mississippi on Sunday, seeking to mobilize the African-American electorate which represents 38% of the population and an even larger share of Democratic supporters. His victory seems to have proved him right.
In addition, the epidemic of the new coronavirus complicates the presidential campaign while the candidates for the Democratic nomination cancelled the partisan rallies planned Tuesday evening in Ohio.
The campaign organizers also warned that each future gathering will be assessed on a case-by-case basis. The National Democratic Committee also confirmed that the debate scheduled for Sunday would take place without an audience.
