Democratic primary results: Joe Biden defeats Bernie Sanders in key states, making him clear frontrunner

Former VP wins crucial victories as six states hold contests to select nominee to face Trump

(Getty)

Joe Biden won victories in four states in the latest crucial round of voting during the 2020 Democratic presidential primaries.

The former vice president and current front-runner entered Tuesday's elections after skyrocketing in polls across the country — projections showed him winning in virtually every state on the map on 10 March. Those states include North Dakota, Idaho, Michigan, Missouri, Mississippi, and Washington.

He ultimately won in Michigan, a state that Bernie Sanders narrowly won in 2016 against Hillary Clinton. In 2020, the state emerged as a battleground for black and white blue-collar voters as well as suburban moderates.

In the South, Mr Biden continued his winning campaign with older black voters.

Meanwhile, all eyes are on Mr Sanders as his campaign seemingly hangs in the balance.

Late-reporting states North Dakota and Washington will likely give Mr Sanders a share of their small delegate pool, though Mr Biden is projected to win in Idaho.

The senator's supporters were hoping to see some upsets, or at least cobble together enough delegates to keep his campaign viable in the race, while Mr Biden carries the delegate lead as the two men prepare for a one-on-one debate on Sunday followed by more primary elections, with voters in half the US still unaccounted for.

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Key Points

• Joe Biden takes decisive lead in first wave of projections
• Bernie Sanders' campaign says he won't address supporters tonight
• Andrew Yang endorses former vice president on live television as votes come in
• Votes for Mike Bloomberg and Elizabeth Warren may have given Biden an edge in some counties
• Trump attacks Democrats on night of crucial vote with bizarre claim about cars

[10 March 2020 20:14 · Clark Mindock]

Good evening and welcome to The Independent's live blog of tonight's primary elections. We're glad you are with us.

[10 March 2020 20:29 · Clark Mindock]

Wondering what to watch out for tonight?

We've got you covered:

[10 March 2020 20:45 · Clark Mindock]

Coronavirus makes its way to the campaign trail

Sanders has cancelled a planned rally amid fears for the virus

[10 March 2020 21:00 · Clark Mindock]

Michigan is the state to watch tonight

[10 March 2020 21:20 · Chris Riotta]

Turns out we may not get results as quickly as we were hoping

But it's not because of the coronavirus - Michigan state says that absentee ballots likely won't be counted until tomorrow, causing some experts to say tonight's vote count will effectively be useless.

[10 March 2020 21:31 · Chris Riotta]

The first polls from today’s crucial vote are starting to pour in

Five out of 10 voters in Washington state said they would trust former Vice President Joe Biden to handle a major crisis, compared to three in 10 voters who went with Bernie Sanders, according to some of the first exit polls being reported tonight. 

We'll keep you updated with more in the moments to come - stay tuned.

[10 March 2020 21:50 · Chris Riotta]

The Independent's Graig Graziosi has more on what happened when the mayor of Kansas City was turned away from a polling location:

The Mayor of Kansas City, Quinton Lucas, was up before the dawn on Tuesday morning, making a video for his constituents about the importance of voting in the 2020 election. 

“Get out and get out to vote, exercise your right to vote. We’ve got a presidential primary today in Missouri, no matter who you vote for, no matter which side, it’s important that we have our voices heard,” he said. 

Then, when he went to have his own voice heard, he was turned away at the poll. 

“I made a video this morning about the importance of voting and then got turned away because I wasn’t in the system even though I’ve voted there for 11 years, including for myself four times! Go figure, but that’s ok. We’ll be back later today,” he wrote in a tweet. 

[10 March 2020 22:10 · Chris Riotta]

The Independent's Richard Hall also digs into former President Barack Obama's new video about health care - and why he has yet to endorse a Democrat running for the White House:

Barack Obama has called for voters to protect his landmark healthcare reform in a video to mark ten years since it was passed, but is still holding out on endorsing a candidate in the Democratic primary race.  

“With your help, it's the closest we’ve ever come to universal coverage in America,” he said of the Affordable Care Act, in a clip released Monday by the liberal advocacy group Protect Our Care. “There are people alive today because of what you did.” 

“Republicans will keep trying both in Congress and in the courts to rip away the care that millions of Americans rely on,” he added. 

It was a rare return to the spotlight for the former president, coming on the same day that voters in six states take part in primaries to choose the Democratic nominee to face Donald Trump in November. 

But despite praising his administration’s crowning legislative achievement, Mr Obama has still yet to endorse his former vice president Joe Biden — who has frequently touted his role in passing the reforms, and has campaigned on building on them. 

[10 March 2020 22:30 · Chris Riotta]

Trump claims Democrats...want to steal cars on crucial vote day

The president is making some wild accusations over on Twitter in the middle of today's crucial second set of primaries across the country:

[10 March 2020 22:50 · Chris Riotta]

Biden goes viral on Super Tuesday part two - for all the wrong reasons

As voters flock to the polls in six key states, Republicans are attacking Joe Biden over a viral confrontation he got in with a union worker: