What"s The Difference Between A Caucus And A Primary?
Updated at 9:20 p.m.
Turnout was strong for Colorados caucuses, with youngvoters showing up in force to support Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders, who has been declared the projected winner by the Associated Press.
The state has a reputation for embracing maverickcandidates, which appears to be bolstering Sanders.
The Associated Press reportsthat with 29 percent of the states precincts reported, Vermont Sen. BernieSanders led former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, 58 to 40 percent.
Participants shared messages on Twitter of long waits to getinto their caucus sites, or groups being forced to meet outside buildings aftersurpassing occupancy limits.
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DENVER, CO Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders predicts that hewill win Colorados Democratic precinct caucuses Tuesday night, one of fivestates he says he will take in the 11Super Tuesday races.
At Colorados Democratic caucuses, registered voters will takepart in a preference poll, deciding between former Secretary of State HillaryClinton and Sanders. On the GOP side, voters will not be polled on theircandidate preferences.
The caucuses start at 7 p.m. Democrats will announce a winnerTuesday night, but the states GOP organization will not, reports FOX Denver.
The Republican Party decided to not hold a straw poll vote in 2016after the national party changed its rules, binding delegates to candidates,reports the Denver Post.
A recent editorial in the Post blasted the states GOP leadersfor the decision to essentially bow out of the presidential winnowing process,especially in a race that at one time had more than a dozen GOP contenders.
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Colorado Republicans will stand on the sidelines on Super Tuesday while otherstates determine whether Donald Trump continues his march toward a possiblenomination or whether his rivals can slow him down, the editorial wrote.
SinceClintons big win on Saturday in South Carolina, Sanders hasfocused his campaign energies on Colorado, Massachusetts and Oklahoma. CNN reports theSanders camp sees the many Southern states voting today with a large bloc ofAfrican-American voters to be in the Clinton column.
Colorado Gov. John Hickenlooper endorsed Clinton"s candidacy in October, while Sen. Michael F. Bennet, Rep. Jared Polis, Rep. Ed Perlmutter, and Rep. Diana DeGette also back the former secretary of state.
Sanders has not secured any high-profile endorsements in Colorado.
SplittingTuesdays states with Clinton could keep the independent senator alive untilthe April 19 primary in New York, and even the California primary on June 7.
DavidWasserman of The Cook Political Report told USA Today that if Clintonslevel of support on Super Tuesday mirrors what shes received in other contests including Iowa and South Carolina she could win 100 more delegates thanSanders.
Thatwould mean that Sanders would need to win approximately 58 percent of theremaining pledged and undeclared superdelegates to tie Hillary Clinton by theend of the primaries, Wasserman said. Thats virtually impossible to do.
Sanderscandidacy gained momentum and attention back in June when he drew sizablecrowds during a campaign trip to Colorado, the Post says. The state is atoss-up, with Clintons campaign sending daughter Chelsea Clinton and actressAmerica Ferrera to a Denver rally a couple weeks ago.
Coloradohas 79 delegates to the Democratic national convention, which are awarded on apercentage basis tied to vote levels, while the state has 37 GOP delegates.
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Photos by Gage Skidmore via Flickr / Creative Commons
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Source: http://patch.com/us/across-america/colorado-democratic-caucus-results-2016-clinton-vs-sanders-0
