Biden’s victories in Miss., Mo. deal early blow to Sanders
WASHINGTON — Joe Biden delivered decisive wins in Missouri and Mississippi on Tuesday, delivering a pair of early salvos against Bernie Sanders on a night when six states were up for grabs.
Mr. Sanders could get a boost in Idaho, North Dakota or Washington state, where polls haven’t yet closed. Mr. Biden also won Michigan.
Even as the contours of the race took shape, the campaigns faced new uncertainty amid fears of the spreading coronavirus. Mr. Sanders and Mr. Biden both abruptly canceled public events in Ohio that were scheduled for Tuesday night. Mr. Sanders’ campaign said all future events would be decided on a caseby-case basis, while Mr. Biden called off a scheduled stop in Florida. The Democratic National Committee also said that Sunday’s debate between Mr. Sanders and Mr. Biden would be conducted without an audience.
Tuesday marked the first time voters weighed in on the Democratic contest since it effectively narrowed to a two-person race between Mr. Sanders and Mr. Biden. It was a test of whether Mr. Sanders can broaden his appeal among African Americans after earlier setbacks in the South. Mr. Biden, meanwhile, sought to show that he can keep momentum going after his surprise Super Tuesday turnaround.
As soon as polls closed in Mississippi and Missouri at 8 p.m. Eastern time, The Associated Press declared Mr. Biden the winner in both states’ Democratic presidential primary.
The AP called Mr. Biden the winner even though state officials had yet to release any results from Tuesday’s election. The news agency did so based on results from AP VoteCast, its wide-ranging survey of the American electorate. That election research captures the views of voters on whom they vote for, and why.
The VoteCast survey showed Mr. Biden with a wide lead in both states. Importantly, Mr. Biden was leading in all parts of both states. He led among both men and women, as well as among both white voters and African American voters.
The confidence Mr. Biden exudes is a remarkable turnaround for someone who just two weeks ago looked to be falling too far behind Mr. Sanders to catch up. Now he’s trying to present an air of inevitability as the primary race’s winner.
Although he has rejected notions he could drop out of the race if Tuesday goes badly, Mr. Sanders says he is now battling the “Democratic establishment.”
“In a general election, which candidate can generate the enthusiasm and the excitement and the voter turnout we need?” Mr. Sanders asked.