As Sanders underperformed on Tuesday, pressure ramped up on Warren to drop out of the race. „Imagine if the progressives consolidated last night like the moderates consolidated, who would have won?“ Rep. Ilhan Omar (D-Minn.), a Sanders surrogate, wrote on Twitter.
The Super Tuesday states fell like dominoes to Biden: Alabama, Arkansas, Minnesota, North Carolina, Oklahoma, Virginia and even Massachusetts.
The Bay State was the biggest shocker, given that it’s home to Warren and neighbor to Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders. That is, until Biden landed Texas.
For a candidate once considered toast, Biden defied expectations, beat better-funded rivals and made a statement win Tuesday that’s expected to slingshot him into the next round of states with electorates that match Biden’s voter profile. They could help him build a lead over Sanders as the presidential primary narrows to a de facto, two-man race.
“Super Tuesday showed Biden really is the guy who builds the coalition and puts together the pieces of the Democratic Party. All the momentum is with Biden until the convention,” said Matt Angle, a Texas Democratic strategist.
“This is a story of momentum and people being set in their jaw. It’s a Texas expression: ‘I’m gonna clench my teeth and get in this fight’ — to beat Donald Trump,” Angle said. “Voters don’t want perfect. But they want a fighter with them.”
Super Tuesday wasn’t a total victory for Biden.
Sanders won the mega prize of California, despite spending little time or money there, as well as Colorado and his home state of Vermont. The sheer size of the Democratic state gave Sanders a boost in delegates to help him remain in contention with Biden.
But Super Tuesday also showed the limits of Sanders’ appeal relative to his 2016 candidacy. Two of the states he lost — Minnesota and Oklahoma — Sanders had won in 2016. He was also trailing in Maine, another state he won that year. California, which he lost in 2016, was a glaring exception.
Biden had downplayed expectations heading into Super Tuesday. He wasn’t focusing on winning states, the campaign said, and was instead concentrating on picking off select congressional districts — especially ones with heavy African-American populations — to maximize his strengths and spend his limited dollars.
That strategy won’t change, although Biden’s finances and position in the polls likely will.
Source: politico.com
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