Joe Biden has cemented his position as front-runner in the Democratic race to take on President Donald Trump in November’s White House election.
The former vice-president is projected to win Michigan – the biggest prize of primary voting on Tuesday – and extend his lead over Bernie Sanders.
Biden picked up wins in Tuesday’s contests in Mississippi and Missouri, the state with the night’s largest delegate prize, CBS projects. Idaho and Washington are toss-ups, CBS News estimates. North Dakota also went to the polls on Tuesday.
Losing Michigan, with 125 delegates, came as a blow to Bernie Sanders, who won the state in an upset in 2016. According to exit polls, Biden also won white voters without a college degree — 51% to 45%. This is a group Sanders won in 2016, when he upset Hillary Clinton in the Michigan primary.
Mr Biden’s chances had recovered with big wins on Super Tuesday after which several former rivals endorsed him.
It is unclear if Mr Sanders will fight on until the party convention in July.
The Democrats’ next big election milestone is in a week’s time when 577 delegates are up for grabs.
To secure the nomination, a candidate needs the support of 1,991 delegates. Before Tuesday’s vote, Mr Biden had 648 to Mr Sanders’ 563.
The former vice-president, 77, finished a poor fourth in the Iowa caucuses and fifth in the New Hampshire primary.
But the turn came with South Carolina – where he won due to the support of the large African-American community – and on the 3 March Super Tuesday he won 10 out of 14 states at stake, establishing a sizeable lead over the Vermont senator.
Read more via CBS News
