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The Guardian - US
The Guardian - US
World
Joan E Greve

Joe Biden wins Idaho primary as string of victories continues – as it happened

Primary night summary

That’s it from me after another strong primary night for Joe Biden and another disappointing performance for Bernie Sanders.

Here’s how the night shook out:

  • Biden grew his delegate lead and left Sanders with few, if any, paths to the nomination. The former vice president has already secured four wins tonight in Mississippi, Missouri, Idaho and the key state of Michigan, with North Dakota and Washington state still too close to call.
  • Biden looked ahead to the general election, effectively declaring himself the nominee. Speaking in Philadelphia, the former vice president applauded Sanders’ supporters for their “tireless energy” and promised to work with them to defeat Trump in November.
  • Sanders supporters insisted the primary is not over. Some of Sanders’ allies threw punches against Biden on social media, potentially previewing Sunday’s debate between the two candidates, but Sanders’ decision not to speak tonight did not instill much confidence in his prospects.
  • Biden’s win in Michigan sparked some reconsideration of Sanders’ 2016 campaign. With Biden currently beating Sanders by 15 points in Michigan, some wondered whether Sanders’ 2016 victory there may have had more to do with disapproval of Hillary Clinton than his strength among Rust Belt voters.
  • Coronavirus has effectively frozen the presidential race. Sanders and Biden canceled primary night rallies in Cleveland, and CNN announced the next debate would take place without a live audience or a spin room. The precautionary measures leave Sanders with fewer opportunities to shake up the dynamics of the race, but both candidates acknowledged the priority right now was public health, as the number of US coronavirus cases surpassed 1,000.

The US politics live blog will be back tomorrow morning, so make sure to tune back in. And thank you for following our primary night coverage.

Joe Biden leads Bernie Sanders in Idaho by about 6 points, with 80% of precincts reporting.

Sanders’ loss in Idaho is another blow on a generally disappointing night for the Vermont senator.

Not only did Sanders win the Idaho caucuses in a landslide in 2016, but western states have also been one of his few strong points in recent weeks.

Biden’s win in Idaho underscores how Sanders’ path to the nomination has narrowed to the point that his critics are already declaring the primary to be all but over.

Biden wins Idaho primary

The AP has declared Joe Biden the winner of the primary in Idaho, where polls closed about two hours ago.

Bernie Sanders won the state in 2016, when Idaho used a caucus system, by about 56 points.

Trump once again accused Elizabeth Warren of costing Bernie Sanders the Democratic nomination.

Referring to Warren as “Pocahontas,” Trump tweeted that the Massachusetts senator had “destroyed the campaign of Bernie Sanders” by not dropping out sooner.

Warren dropped out of the race last Thursday after a disappointing performance on Super Tuesday.

Some of Sanders’ supporters had called on her to drop out sooner, as moderate candidates Pete Buttigieg and Amy Klobuchar withdrew to endorse Joe Biden.

But Sanders himself did not publicly pressure Warren to drop out before Super Tuesday, and it’s unclear whether Warren’s earlier departure would have helped Sanders in states like Michigan, where he is currently losing by 15 points.

Some of Bernie Sanders’ allies told PBS they believe the candidate still has a “slim path” to the nomination, despite his disappointing performance against Joe Biden tonight.

Sanders will likely make that argment himself on Sunday, when he is scheduled to face off against Biden in a debate in Phoenix.

However, it would take a truly catastrophic debate performance on Biden’s part for Sanders to have any hope of a campaign reset.

It’s also important to keep in mind that the four states voting next Tuesday -- Florida, Illinois, Ohio and Arizona -- are all states Sanders lost in 2016, likely making it difficult for him to regain momentum in the next batch of contests.

Bernie Sanders’ poor performance tonight has sparked some reconsideration of his 2016 campaign.

Sanders narrowly won the 2016 Michigan primary against Hillary Clinton, but Joe Biden was quickly declared the winner there tonight.

With 83% of precincts reporting, Biden is beating Sanders by about 15 points in Michigan, where 125 pledged delegates are up for grabs.

Sanders’ underperformance has led a number of political commentators to suggest his 2016 Michigan win had more to do with disapproval of Clinton than Sanders’ strength among Rust Belt voters, which the Vermont senator’s allies have frequently boasted about.

So this has been an overall terrible night for Sanders. Not only is his opponent effectively declaring victory in the noninating contest, but the story of his 2016 campaign is also being rewritten in a much less flattering light.

The Guardian’s Hallie Golden reports from Seattle, Washington:

As initial results showed Joe Biden and Bernie Sanders in a very tight race for Washington State delegates, Shaun Scott, Sanders’ local field director, alternated between watching results and saying encouraging remarks to election staff and volunteers.

“We got this,” he said to a few of the people who had gathered at a bar in Seattle to watch the results on a large television screen.

Scott highlighted the fact that election officials in Washington reported that 60,000 voters didn’t select a political party on their ballot, which could have invalidated those votes. He said the campaign team is prepared to go out this weekend and next to cure those ballots.

“Yet another reason for people to check out installment number two of the Washington state primary,” he told the Guardian. “Episode one was a cliff hanger. But we think we’re going to come to a pretty definitive conclusion here in episode two.”

Washington state is another example of how turnout often spikes when a caucus becomes a primary.

In 2016, when Washington held caucuses, roughly 230,000 people participated. (Bernie Sanders won that race by about 45 points.)

In comparison, more than a million votes have already been counted tonight in the state’s primary, with Sanders and Joe Biden running neck and neck.

Bernie Sanders and Joe Biden are neck and neck in Washington state, where 89 pledged delegates are up for grabs.

With 67% of precincts reporting, Sanders leads Biden by just 0.2 points, or about 2,000 votes.

Considering the narrow margin and Washington’s high rates of mail-in voting, it may take days to know the winner:

Updated

Progressive groups look ahead to November after Sanders' bad night

Even though a number of Bernie Sanders’ allies insist the race for the nomination is not over, some progressive groups are already looking ahead to November after their preferred candidate’s disappointing performance tonight.

The political director of the group CPD Action, which endorsed Sanders in December, said the Vermont senator “has proven that his voice and his movement are vital to any success in November.”

“We are committed to the Bernie Sanders campaign and the values that it represents,” Natalia Salgado added in the statement. “We will continue to push this agenda forward in the primaries, the general and beyond. Our North Star is to defeat Donald Trump and we are prepared to do what it takes.”

Adam Green -- the co-founder of the Progressive Change Campaign Committee, which initially endorsed Elizabeth Warren -- said Sanders and Joe Biden should still debate on Sunday.

“Not because it will likely change the outcome, but because in order to not change the outcome Biden has to withstand one-on-one scrutiny similar to a debate with Trump,” Green told the Guardian.

All of this indicates that progressive groups have little hope of Sanders turning back the tide of momentum that appears to be carrying Biden to the nomination.

As Joe Biden looks ahead to the general election, Bernie Sanders’ allies are sending a very different message: this race is far from over.

From congresswoman Rashida Tlaib, one of Sanders’ top surrogates:

But congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, another top Sanders surrogate, acknowledged on Instagram that this was a “tough night electorally”.

Updated

Joe Biden won praise for his remarks tonight in Philadelphia, which felt like the victory speech of a presumptive nominee.

The candidate spoke to a small group after having to cancel his Cleveland rally due to coronavirus. and he commended Bernie Sanders’ supporters for “their tireless energy and their passion.”

From a former senior Obama adviser:

From Kamala Harris’ former communications director:

From an MSNBC analyst:

Joe Biden’s staffers in Philadelphia, where the candidate just spoke, are celebrating like this race is over.

Biden has already won three primaries tonight – Mississippi, Missouri and the key state of Michigan.

The former vice-president is also currently running even with Sanders in Washington state’s primary, while Sanders won Washington’s 2016 caucuses in a landslide.

Updated

Sanders still intends to participate in Sunday debate

Bernie Sanders’ campaign said that he still intends to participate in Sunday’s debate against Joe Biden, although the candidate will not speak tonight.

Sanders is already facing some calls to drop out of the race and allow Democrats to focus on the general election against Trump after his disappointing performance tonight.

Speaking at a Philadelphia event tonight, Biden himself appeared to be pivoting to the general election, thanking Sanders’ supporters for their “tireless energy” and saying they would work together to defeat Trump.

However, Sanders seems unlikely to drop out anytime soon, considering he kept his 2016 campaign going until shortly before the party’s nominating convention.

Polls close in Idaho and Washington state

It is 11 pm ET, so polls have now closed in Idaho and Washington state, the last two states holding primaries tonight.

Bernie Sanders won both states in landslides in 2016, but that was when they held caucuses, rather than the primaries they held today.

Sanders has consistently performed better in caucuses, so the new voting system could put him at a disadvantage.

Biden: 'Our very democracy is at stake in this election'

Joe Biden is addressing a small group at an event in Philadelphia after his strong primary performance tonight.

Sounding very much like a presidential nominee, Biden warned that another four years of Trump’s policies would do irreparable damage to the country.

“Donald Trump’s ‘America First’ policy made America alone,” Biden said of the president’s foreign policy.

The former vice-president used the setting of the speech, Philadelphia’s National Constitution Center, to extoll the virtues of American government.

“Our very democracy is at stake in this election,” Biden said, repeating his common campaign line that America is in a “battle for the soul of this nation”.

“There’s not a single thing we cannot do if we do it together,” Biden said.

Updated

Biden applauds Sanders' supporters after three primary wins

Joe Biden has taken the podium at his Philadelphia event, addressing a small group after already securing three primary wins tonight.

“Although there’s a way to go, it looks like we’re going to have another good night,” Biden said.

The former vice president then appeared to pivot to the general election, applauding Bernie Sanders’ supporters for “their tireless energy and their passion.”

“We share a common goal, and together we’ll defeat Donald Trump,” Biden said. “We’re going to bring this nation together.”

The unity push sent a clear message that the Biden camp considers the nominating contest to be all but over.

Updated

The Guardian’s Hallie Golden reports from Washington state:

A small handful of Bernie Sanders campaign staff and volunteers sat around talking, playing pool and watching presidential election results on a large television tuned to CNN in a bar in Seattle.

The unofficial gathering was organized last minute after a primary-night event that was expected to see as many as 400 people was canceled because of the coronavirus outbreak.

Shaun Scott, Sanders’ field director in Washington, told the Guardian that they made sure not to advertise the event or even post about it on social media because of the concern with bringing large groups of people together in a state at the center of this outbreak.

“We want to make sure that at the same time that we want to celebrate all the work that we’ve done up to this point and through the March 10th primary, that we’re not endangering people’s health frankly,” he said.

Health officials in King County, which includes Seattle, have recommended that everyone should avoid crowds and being in large groups of people in spaces that are poorly ventilated. As of Tuesday, the state has 162 confirmed cases of coronavirus across eight counties, including 22 deaths.

Joe Biden’s campaign has also opted not to hold any primary night events in Washington, and has focused on engaging voters remotely, including through virtual phone banking and tele town halls.

Sanders will not speak tonight

Bernie Sanders’ campaign has announced the presidential candidate will not speak tonight after losing the key state of Michigan to Joe Biden.

Sanders traveled back to his home state of Vermont tonight after having to cancel his rally in Cleveland, Ohio, due to concerns about coronavirus.

Although Sanders will not address supporters or the press tonight, the candidate is already facing calls to drop out, as some Democratic strategists declare Biden to be the presumptive nominee.

Bernie Sanders is at risk of falling below 15% in Mississippi, which would shut him out from winning any statewide delegates there.

With 72% of Mississippi precincts reporting, Joe Biden is at 81%, and Sanders is at 15%.

Sanders will likely win some of Mississippi’s district-level delegates regardless, but if he cannot grab any statewide delegates there, it will be another bad headline for him on a generally disappointing night.

Trump endorses Sessions' Senate primary rival

While more Democratic primary results trickle in, Trump has turned his attention to a high-profile Senate race in Alabama.

The president announced in a tweet he was endorsing former Auburn University football coach Tommy Tuberville in Alabama’s Republican Senate primary.

The announcement is particularly noteworthy because Tuberville is running against Jeff Sessions, Trump’s fomer attorney general.

Sessions was the first sitting senator to endorse Trump’s presidential campaign in 2016, and he later left his Senate seat to serve as the president’s first attorney general.

However, Trump soured on Sessions after the attorney general recused himself from the Russia investgiation, clearing the way for the appointment of special counsel Robert Mueller.

Sessions is now looking to rejoin the Senate, and he and Tuberville are headed to a March 31 runoff to determine the Republican Senate nominee in Alabama.

And Trump, who has clearly not let go of his grudge against Sessions, has now thrown his support behind Tuberville, which could give the former coach a key advantage in the race.

Joe Biden’s win in Michigan adds to his list of victories in high-turnout contests, considering the state is well on its way to exceeding its turnout in 2016, when Bernie Sanders won the primary.

Biden also secured victories last week in Virginia, where turnout nearly doubled from 2016, and Massachusetts, which saw a record-high number of primary ballots cast.

Biden’s victories in these high-turnout races is another blow for Bernie Sanders, who had predicted his candidacy would expand the Democratic electorate and increase primary turnout.

The Guardian’s Tom Perkins reports from a Sanders watch party in Michigan:

As results came in and showed Joe Biden’s lead widening beyond reach, Bernie Sanders’ Michigan campaign coordinator, Michael Fasullo, addressed supporters and volunteers, characterizing the night as “difficult” and “frustrating,” while underscoring what the progressive cause is up against.

“This work is not easy. If it was something that’s in the bag, then we would’ve had Medicare For All and a Green New Deal a long time ago,” Fasullo said.

“It’s hard for many reasons. There are entrenched interest groups and there’s an establishment that wants to see us not succeed, but we continue on throughout this process no matter what.”

Yang endorses Biden on CNN

Former presidential candidate Andrew Yang just endorsed Joe Biden while speaking live on CNN.

“The math says Joe is our prohibitive nominee,” said Yang, who joined CNN as a commentator after dropping out of the race last month.

Yang said Biden had called him last week, but he told the frontrunner he wanted to see how Michigan and other states panned out before endorsing.

“We need to bring the party together,” Yang said. “We need to start working on defeating Donald Trump in the fall.”

The tech entrepreneur had supported Bernie Sanders in 2016 and attracted some of the Vermont senator’s supporters with his campaign promise of a universal basic income.

Yang’s comments came after the leaders of some Democratic super PACs declared the primary to be all but over after Biden’s victory in Michigan.

Bernie Sanders lost the crucial state of Michigan tonight, and things are not going to get easier for him next week.

Four states will hold primaries next Tuesday: Arizona, Florida, Illinois and Ohio.

Of the four, the most delegate-rich state is Florida, which will award 219 pledged delegates.

A poll released today showed Sanders trailing Joe Biden by 36 points in Florida, which would translate to a significant net delegate gain for the former vice president.

Sanders’ only hope for a comeback rests on Sunday’s debate. But even if Biden turned in a terrible debate performance, it’s getting increasingly difficult for Sanders to chart a path to victory, considering how many states have already voted.

The president of the liberal super PAC American Bridge is similarly referring to Joe Biden as the presumptive nominee after his wins tonight.

It seems unlikely that Bernie Sanders, who stayed in the 2016 primary until shortly before the party’s convention, will be swayed by these calls from Democratic super PACs.

However, Sanders’ loss in Michigan, where he narrowly defeated Hillary Clinton in 2016, seems like a death knell for his campaign.

Democratic super PAC declares Biden the presumptive nominee

Joe Biden has officially won three primaries tonight: Mississippi, Missouri and the key state of Michigan.

Those victories have raised even more questions about whether Bernie Sanders has any viable path to the nomination.

The chairman of Priorities USA, the largest Democratic super PAC, is already calling Biden the presumptive nominee after his wins tonight:

Biden wins Michigan

The AP has declared Joe Biden the winner of the primary in Michigan, the most delegate-rich state voting tonight.

Biden’s victory marks a devastating defeat for Bernie Sanders, who won the state’s primary in 2016.

The Guardian’s Hallie Golden reports from Washington state:

About a dozen people stood in line at a vote center in Renton, Washington, a city about 12 miles southeast of Seattle, waiting to register to vote or receive some help with their ballot.

Washington now votes by mail for the Democratic primary instead of holding a caucus, but residents can still come in-person at one of the dozens of vote centers across the state.

As Washington faces an increasing number of confirmed cases of coronavirus, some visitors wore latex gloves, while many others helped themselves to the selection of hand sanitizer set out throughout the center.

Deshawna Harris, from Kent, Washington, said she came to the voting center because her mailbox had been broken into, so she never received her ballot. She told the Guardian she wasn’t really concerned about coming to the facility given everything going on with coronavirus, but she wore latex gloves just to be safe.

“A lot of hands were touching the machine that I was using and I didn’t want to touch it without having protection on my hands,” she said.

Polls close in Michigan

It is 9 pm ET, so all polls have now closed in Michigan, which is the top prize tonight.

Initial results indicate Bernie Sanders is running neck-and-neck with Joe Biden in counties where the Vermont senator dominated in 2016.

However, Michigan officials have warned that final results will likely not be available until tomorrow because of the high number of absentee ballots and same-day registrations.

A Sanders campaign staffer shared a video showing long lines at a polling place near Michigan State University due to the high number of students registering today.

Amy Klobuchar, who endorsed Joe Biden after suspending her own presidential campaign last week, celebrated tonight’s results.

The senator from Minnesota, which Biden won last week, appeared to predict the former vice president would sweep the “M states” -- Mississippi, Missouri and Michigan -- tonight.

Initial results from Michigan indicate Biden is outperforming Hillary Clinton’s 2016 showing, which will be disappointing news for Bernie Sanders.

The Guardian’s Hallie Golden reports from Washington state:

At elections headquarters for King County, which includes the city of Seattle, dozens of men and women wore latex gloves as they sorted and counted primary presidential ballots in a state at the center of the US coronavirus outbreak.

An election workers sorts vote-by-mail ballots in Renton, Washington.
An election workers sorts vote-by-mail ballots in Renton, Washington. Photograph: Jason Redmond/AFP via Getty Images

The facility in Renton, Washington, a city southeast of Seattle, had 150 elections workers who each had access to a dozen sanitizer stations, equipped with large jugs of hand sanitizer, paper towels and instructions on washing hands and frequently discarding gloves.

The state is holding its primary elections today, and is the second most delegate-rich state at stake.

Halei Watkins, spokesperson for King County elections, said they’ve also asked workers to clean their stations at breaks and have instructed their janitorial staff to focus all of their energy on wiping and disinfecting the building.

She said they had a handful of workers call out sick, but that is not abnormal for a primary.

As of Tuesday, the state has 162 confirmed cases of coronavirus across eight counties, including 22 deaths.

Janice Reese, 78, a temporary, part-time worker at the facility, said she was not concerned about coming in to open ballot envelopes because of how many health precautions the facility is taking. Wearing purple, latex gloves and finger cots for added protection, she said she made sure to wash her hands and change her gloves multiple times a day.

“I don’t think you can be too cautious,” she told the Guardian.

Updated

Initial results from Michigan are not promising for Bernie Sanders, who pulled off a narrow victory there in 2016.

So far, it looks like Joe Biden has managed to outperform Hillary Clinton across Michigan and could be headed for a victory in the state, where 125 pledged delegates are up for grabs.

Many more results still need to come in from Michigan, and some of the state’s polling places are open for another 20 minutes, so stay tuned.

It was widely expected Joe Biden would dominate among African-American voters tonight, but the numbers from exit polls are still pretty stunning.

According to CNN, Biden won the support of 96% (yes, 96%) of black voters aged 60 or older in Mississippi.

Considering such voters made up nearly a third of the primary electorate in Mississippi, Bernie Sanders clearly didn’t stand a chance there.

CNN’s exit polls indicate Biden could be looking at a margin of victory in Mississippi that exceeds 50 points.

The AP and television networks declared Joe Biden the winner of the Mississippi primary as soon as polls closed about 20 minutes ago.

However, CNN had an odd moment where they said Bernie Sanders had actually won the primary, which would have been the biggest political shock in years.

It took CNN host Wolf Blitzer a minute to recover from the technical difficulties before declaring Biden the winner:

Within minutes of polls closing in Mississippi multiple news outlets including AP and CNN, have declared Joe Biden the winner.

Joe Biden speaks during a rally at Tougaloo College in Tougaloo, Mississippi.
Joe Biden speaks during a rally at Tougaloo College in Tougaloo, Mississippi. Photograph: Emily Kask/AFP via Getty Images

It’s an indication that Biden is enjoying yet another strong showing in a Southern state with a large, African American base in the Democratic Party. Mississippi’s Democratic primary electorate was 71% Black in 2016, according to exit polls. Biden has won convincing victories in Alabama and South Carolina, where Black voters also make up a majority.

There are only 36 delegates in play in Mississippi, so the state is not a crucial one when it comes to the overall delegate count. But the result means another disappointing showing for Bernie Sanders among a majority African American electorate, indicating his campaign is just not cutting through in this critical part of the country.

It’s worth remembering how close Bernie Sanders came to winning the Missouri primary in 2016.

The Vermont senator lost to Hillary Clinton by just 0.25% in the state, giving Clinton only a 1-delegate net gain.

Tonight, the AP called the race for Joe Biden as soon as polls closed, and the former vice president looks poised to defeat Sanders by double digits.

Exit polls indicate Joe Biden holds significant leads over Bernie Sanders in both Mississippi and Missouri.

Biden’s exact margins of victory will be key in determining his net delegate haul from the two states, which will collectively award 104 delegates.

But with exit polls showing Biden leading by about 20 points in Missouri and more than 50 points in Mississippi, it’s safe to say the two states will help Biden move farther ahead of Sanders in the delegate count.

Biden wins Missouri primary

Joe Biden has also won the Democratic primary in Missouri, giving him two victories already tonight.

Exit polls indicate Biden leads Bernie Sanders by about 20 points in Missouri and more than 50 points in Mississippi.

Biden wins Mississippi primary

No surprise here: Joe Biden has been declared the winner of the primary in Mississippi, where polls just closed.

The victory continues Biden’s sweep of southern states, where has dominated thanks to his popularity among African-American voters.

Biden cancels Tampa rally because of coronavirus

Joe Biden’s campaign has just announced he will cancel his planned rally in Tampa, Florida, tomorrow because of the coronavirus.

The former vice president will instead deliver remarks on the outbreak in his home state of Delaware.

Biden had already canceled his Cleveland rally tonight because of concerns about the health threat.

All eyes tonight will be on Michigan, which is the most delegate-rich state voting tonight and is considered crucial for the future of Bernie Sanders’ candidacy.

However, Michigan’s secretary of state has already warned it may not be until tomorrow that the winner of the state’s primary is known.

Thanks to 2018 changes in the state’s primary voting system, Michigan has seen an increase in the number of absentee ballots as well as same-day registrations.

Those changes mean it will take longer to report the state’s full results. However, if the race is a landslide win for Joe Biden, a winner could still be declared as soon as polls close, which will happen in five minutes.

The Guardian’s Tom Perkins reports from Detroit, Michigan:

Polls close at 8 pm in Michigan, and the Bernie Sanders campaign here is gathering for a watch party in downtown Detroit.

However, it’s still all business at its headquarters on the city’s west side. Volunteers are being dispatched to polling locations throughout Detroit to check voting record receipts that are printed and posted at the location.

Those results will be sent to a third-party monitor that isn’t affiliated with the campaign and checked against the results posted tomorrow by the Michigan Secretary of State.

It’s a measure designed to avoid — or catch — inaccuracies like those discovered after the Iowa caucuses.

Updated

Sanders seeks much-needed victory in Michigan

Polls will start closing in 20 minutes in Michigan, where Bernie Sanders needs a strong performance tonight to dispel concerns that he lacks any viable path to the nomination.

Bernie Sanders visits a polling location at Warren E. Bow Elementary School in Detroit.
Bernie Sanders visits a polling location at Warren E. Bow Elementary School in Detroit. Photograph: Paul Sancya/AP

Sanders underperformed on Super Tuesday last week, as Joe Biden secured victories in 10 states and became the undisputed frontrunner in the race.

If Sanders cannot win in Michigan or at least keep Biden’s margin of victory there low, the Vermont senator will likely face pressure to exit the race and allow Democrats to focus on defeating Trump in the general election.

Sanders has his work cut out for him in Michigan. The RealClearPolitics polling average shows Sanders trailing Biden by more than 20 points in the state.

But Sanders has previously pulled off an upset victory in Michigan, where he shocked the political world by defeating Hillary Clinton in the state’s 2016 primary.

He will need a similar shock tonight to remain a viable candidate in the primary. Michigan results will start rolling in soon, so stay tuned.

No live audience for the next debate

The hosts of the next Democratic debate, which will take place March 15, have just announced there will be no live audience, spin room or press filing center for the event, due to coronavirus.

CNN said the change had been made at the request of the campaigns of Joe Biden and Bernie Sanders, both of whom canceled ralles in Cleveland tonight because of the outbreak.

The campaigns said they would make decisions about future events on a case-by-case basis, but this debate announcement indicates more cancellations are likely to come.

Joe Biden is looking to increase his delegate lead over Bernie Sanders tonight, after the former vice president’s strong Super Tuesday performance.

Biden is 96 delegates ahead of Sanders now, according to the Guardian’s delegate tracker:

Some of the states that voted last week, most notably California, are still awarding delegates, so Biden’s exact lead is a bit fluid.

However, with another 352 delegates up for grabs tonight, Biden is hoping he can pull away from Sanders and leave his rival with virtually no path to the nomination.

Exit polls from the six states voting today indicate Joe Biden has an edge over Bernie Sanders when it comes to confidence in their ability to handle a crisis.

According to CNN, about half of voters in Michigan and Washington state say they have more confidence in Biden to handle a major crisis. About 6 in 10 Missouri voters said the same.

With Washington state seeing some of the highest levels of coronavirus, more than 8 in 10 primary voters said they were at least somewhat concerned about the outbreak.

Those numbers should be good news for Biden, but actual results from Michigan, Mississippi, Missouri and North Dakota will start rolling in at 8 pm ET, or in about 45 minutes.

Biden and Sanders cancel Cleveland rallies due to coronavirus

Tonight’s primaries have been somewhat overshadowed by the coronavirus, as the number of US cases of the illness increases.

Bernie Sanders and Joe Biden both canceled rallies in Cleveland, Ohio, tonight in response to concerns about holding crowded events amid the outbreak. (Ohio will hold its primary next Tuesday.)

“We are heeding the public warnings from Ohio state officials, who have communicated concern about holding large, indoor events during the coronavirus outbreak,” Sanders’ communications director said in a statement.

Both campaigns said decisions about future campaign events would be made on a case-by-case basis as updates on the virus become available.

“We will continue to consult with public health officials and public health guidance and make announcements about future events in the coming days,” Biden’s deputy campaign manager said.

Biden will instead hold a primary night event in Philadelphia, and Sanders is traveling home to Burlington, Vermont.

Here's when polls close

Six states are holding presidential primaries today. Here’s when each state’s polls close:

  • Mississippi: 8 pm ET.
  • Missouri: 8 pm ET.
  • North Dakota: 8 pm ET.
  • Michigan: 8 or 9 pm ET, depending on the locality’s time zone.
  • Idaho: 11 pm ET.
  • Washington state: 11 pm ET.

The blog will have updates and analysis once results start rolling in, so stay tuned.

Six states hold primaries in a make-or-break moment for Sanders

Good evening, live blog readers!

Voters in six states have been heading to the polls today and will collectively award 352 delegates tonight to Joe Biden, Bernie Sanders and long-shot candidate Tulsi Gabbard.

People vote in the Michigan primary at Chrysler Elementary School in Detroit.
People vote in the Michigan primary at Chrysler Elementary School in Detroit. Photograph: Jeff Kowalsky/AFP via Getty Images

Tonight’s results represent a make-or-break moment for Sanders, who underperformed on Super Tuesday, while Biden won 10 of the 14 states that voted last week.

This is also a symbolic moment for Sanders, considering his remarkable win over Hillary Clinton in the 2016 Michigan primary.

If Sanders cannot pull off another upset victory in Michigan tonight, it will trigger more questions about whether he has any viable path to the presidential nomination.

Polls in Michigan and three other states start closing in about an hour and a half, so stay tuned.

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