Bernie Sanders is vowing to continue his fight for the Democratic Party’s nomination, despite former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton obtaining the requisite number of delegates needed to clinch the Democratic nomination for president, according to a new count from the Associated Press earlier today.
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Bill Clinton slammed supporters of Bernie Sanders who heckled him during a campaign stop for his wife, Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton.
Though superdelegates will not formally cast their vote until the party’s July convention in Philadelphia, those tallied have told the AP they will “unequivocally” support Clinton.
While most delegates are awarded by popular votes in state-by-state elections, superdelegates largely consist of party leaders and elected senators, members of Congress and governors, and can change their mind at any time.
“It is unfortunate that the media, in a rush to judgment, are ignoring the Democratic national committee’s clear statement that it is wrong to count the votes of super-delegates before they actually vote at the convention this summer”, said his campaign spokesman Michael Briggs in a statement.
But that has not deterred the news media.
He has commanded huge crowds in parks and stadiums, galvanising younger voters with his promises to address economic inequality.
Sanders, a self-described democratic socialist, who has won 20 states and pushed the heavily favored Clinton for the nomination, has outlined plans to influence the party platform and try to persuade superdelegates that he would fare better than Clinton against presumptive Republican nominee Donald Trump.
President Barack Obama is ready to make it official.
At an appearance in Long Beach, California, shortly after the news broke, she said: “We are on the brink of a historic and unprecedented moment but we still have work to do”.
Clinton now has 1,812 pledged delegates won in primaries and caucuses; Sanders has 1,521.
Asked Monday whether an Obama endorsement of Clinton would affect his campaign, Sanders deflected, saying he was being asked to speculate before an important primary in California.
The comments mirrored those of her campaign manager, Robby Mook, just minutes before.
“Thanks to you, we have reached a milestone”, Clinton said in a speech.
The AP’s count comes on the day before primary elections in five states, including California, where there are 851 delegates at stake, and New Jersey, where 142 are at stake. But a Reuters reporter who toured the area observed an abundance of Sanders supporters.
But a loss in a populous Democratic stronghold like California could lend credence to Trump’s claim that she is a weakened candidate. “So it is time to judge Donald Trump by his words and his deeds”.
Trump, the presumptive Republican nominee, has regularly stirred up controversy on the campaign trail.
On Monday, Trump, a NY real estate developer, insisted his concerns were valid. Clinton, in an MSNBC interview on Monday, said Trump’s comments about the judge were racist and bigoted.
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Current polls shows Clinton takes only two-percentage-point lead on Sanders in California, 49 percent to 47 percent, as Sanders has closed a double-digit gap there in recent weeks.
