Super Tuesday: Bloomberg endorses Biden in bid 'to defeat Trump' as Sanders launches fresh attack on frontrunner
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Your support makes all the difference.Donald Trump has taken to Twitter to mock Michael Bloomberg after he dropped out of the Democratic 2020 race and to sow division among progressive candidates Bernie Sanders and Elizabeth Warren following the party’s Super Tuesday primaries, accusing the latter of splitting the vote and damaging her friend and rival’s chances in key regions.
Former US vice president Joe Biden was the big winner as 14 states went to the polls yesterday, completing the comeback he began at last weekend’s South Carolina primary by claiming at least nine key states including Texas, with Maine also projected to be confirmed in his favour.
Sanders did take home the top prize, the delegate-rich state of California, but otherwise secured only three others, an outcome that saw the moderate wing of the party come together emphatically to back Biden.
In the fallout of those contests, Mr Bloomberg held a rally in New York City where he announced he was endorsing Mr Biden.
Mr Sanders, meanwhile, opened fresh lines of attack on Mr Biden as the two gear up for a two-man race going forward.
And, Ms Warren's team suggested she is considering her path forward — with many believing that means she plans on dropping out of the race imminently.
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Joe Biden doesn't support Bernie Sanders' Medicare for All, but his support for marijuana legalisation - increasingly popular with Americans - is less clear.
Bloomberg spending big in every state ahead of Super Tuesday
Michael Bloomberg has spent more on advertising than all other candidates combined ahead of Super Tuesday, barely making a dent in his billions with a $560m sum spent on campaign adverts.
He's hoping to make a big debut on Super Tuesday ballots and has bought airtime in every single state. He spent more than $77m in California alone.
Tom Steyer came in second, with $260m, just half of what Bloomberg has spent. Steyer dropped out on Saturday night.
Bloomberg: 'Tejas. That's Spanish for Texas... You're in a Cuban neighbourhood, so you got to know your audience'
It's not a day in the 2020 campaign without some cringe from one of the campaigns.
Watch Michael Bloomberg insist that Texas is pronounced "Tejas" while on the trail in Miami.
Biden projected to win North Carolina, boosted by black voters
Joe Biden's propulsion in early returns in North Carolina appears to have come largely from black voters, who also gave him the surge to victory in South Carolina.
According to early exit polls, roughly 6 in 10 black voters in North Carolina cast their votes for the former vice president.
Half of voters who only recently made their decision are backing Biden
Nearly half of all Super Tuesday voters who didn't know who they were going to vote for until a few days ago are casting their votes for the former vice president, according to exit polling.
Roughly a quarter of Super Tuesday voters were late deciders.
Malfunctioning voting machines frustrate voters in California
Electronic voting machines in California have been hit by widespread technical difficulties on Super Tuesday, which have frustrated voters and may delay some results.
Los Angeles County - home to more than 5 million voters - was among the worst-affected, as many took to social media to complain of problems with a new $300 million voting system.
Richard Hall reports:
The strategy: delegate math comes into play as Biden takes early states
As Joe Biden begins collecting delegates in early wins, Bernie Sanders' campaign is betting on California for a big win for the night.
Virginia, North Carolina and Alabama combined have roughly 260 delegates, while California alone has 415 delegates. Texas - where polls just closed - has 228.
Still, the former vice president could win the most delegates tonight.
Bloomberg gets first 'win'
As results trickle in, Michael Bloomberg has won a Super Tuesday election in the only territory he didn't visit.
After spending more than half a billion dollars on his campaign, the former New York mayor has won... the South Pacific territory of American Samoa, according to the American Samoa Democratic Committee.
Meanwhile, he is set to finish below delegate eligibility in Virginia, where he first held a campaign event.
The president twists the knife into Bloomberg, whose multi-million dollar campaign is earning him very little delegates, as Trump shares a video of the former New York mayor sucking on his fingers.
Bernie and Biden battling it out as reports speculate Bloomberg to drop out
Bernie Sanders has claimed his second victory of the night in Colorado, where he is projected to win the state, which carries 67 delegates.
Meanwhile, Joe Biden is projected to take Oklahoma.
Michael Bloomberg, meanwhile, is expected to make an announcement about the future of his campaign tomorrow, according to NBC News.
Before votes began trickling in, his campaign spokesman said that "you would assess after tonight, you would assess after next Tuesday" once votes are in. "I think most Democrats in this race understand that our number one objective is defeating Donald Trump."
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