Joe Biden Racks Up Wins; Sanders Gets Biggest Prize

Senator wins California after former VP sweeps the South
By Newser Editors,  Newser Staff
Posted Mar 3, 2020 6:04 PM CST
Updated Mar 4, 2020 2:23 AM CST
Biden Takes Virginia as First Super Tuesday Polls Close
An election worker holds up an "I Voted" sticker during the New Hampshire primary at Parker-Varney Elementary School, Tuesday, Feb. 11, 2020, in Manchester, N.H.   (AP Photo/Andrew Harnik)

The Super Tuesday polls are closed, and it's shaping up to be a good night for Joe Biden and Bernie Sanders, not so much for Elizabeth Warren and Michael Bloomberg. Biden came out strong, particularly in the South, but Sanders took the night's biggest prize, California, as expected. He's also leading in the second biggest, Texas. Biden racked up wins in Virginia, North Carolina, Alabama, Tennessee, Oklahoma, Arkansas, Massachusetts (Warren's home state), and Minnesota. Sanders also took his home state of Vermont, as well as Colorado. Delegates are what matter, though, and a whopping 1,344 are at stake. Sanders is expected to be the leader when all is said and done, but because these are not winner-take-all races, the full effect of the voting might not be clear until Wednesday. The states at play, in order of delegates, per the Hill and Vox:

  • California: 415 delegates; polls closed at 8, and the AP called the race quickly for Sanders. The key questions are how big his margin of victory will be and how many delegates his rivals can win. Sanders dominated in early results, with 67 delegates to 18 for Biden, 8 for Bloomberg, and 5 for Warren.
  • Texas: 228 delegates; all polls closed at 9; the AP called it for Biden hours later.
  • North Carolina: 110 delegates; the polls closed at 7:30, and the AP called the race for Biden about 15 minutes later.
  • Virginia: 99 delegates; polls closed at 7, and the AP immediately declared Biden the winner. That the race was called so quickly bodes well for Biden because it suggests he "cleaned up" with African-American voters, per Politico.
  • Massachusetts: 91 delegates; polls closed at 8, and the AP called the race for Biden about three hours after polls closed. This is Warren's home state, of course, and thus a bad loss for her. Worse, she was on track to finish in third behind second-place Sanders.
  • Minnesota: 75 delegates; polls closed at 9, and the AP called the race for Biden within the hour. Sen. Amy Klobuchar's endorsement surely helped.
  • Colorado: 67 delegates; polls closed at 9, and the AP immediately called the race for Sanders.
  • Tennessee: 64 delegates; polls closed at 8, and the AP called the race for Biden about 9:30.
  • Alabama: 52 delegates; polls closed at 8, and the AP immediately called the race for Biden.
  • Oklahoma: 37 delegates; polls closed at 8, and the AP called the race for Biden about an hour later.
  • Arkansas: 31 delegates; polls closed at 8:30, and the AP called the race for Biden about 90 minutes later.
  • Utah: 29 delegates; polls closed at 10, and the AP called the race for Sanders.
  • Maine: 24 delegates; polls closed at 8, but Sanders and Biden are still neck-and neck.
  • Vermont: 16 delegates; polls closed at 7, and the AP declared Sanders the winner of his home state at 7:20.
  • American Samoa: The US territory held a caucus, and Bloomberg won five of six delegates; Rep. Tulsi Gabbard, who was born there, won the last one.
(More Super Tuesday stories.)

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