Joe Biden wins Missouri Democratic primary, NBC News projects, another key win for the former VP

Joe Biden will win the Missouri Democratic presidential primary Tuesday, NBC News projects, setting him up to take another healthy chunk of delegates in his race with Bernie Sanders. 

Missouri has 68 pledged delegates up for grabs. The former vice president will come away with at least 3 of them, while the Vermont senator will win 15 or more, according to NBC. 

The projected win adds to Biden’s early success on a night when six states held Democratic nominating contests. The front-runner to face President Donald Trump will also win the Mississippi primary, NBC projected. 

In its 2016 primary, Hillary Clinton won Missouri by a tight margin, garnering 50% of the vote to Sanders’ 49%. Four years ago, the Vermont senator won a majority of white voters even as black voters overwhelmingly favored Clinton, according to exit polls. 

That changed Tuesday. While about seven-in-10 black voters chose Biden in Missouri, so did more than half of white voters, exit surveys found.

He also dominated among older Show Me State residents. A recurring problem for Sanders showed up again in the state: 18 to 29-year-olds made up only 12% of the electorate, down from 16% in 2016, according to exit polls. 

A senior aide to Sanders told NBC News that he does not plan to deliver remarks Tuesday evening to address the results.

Article source: https://www.cnbc.com/2020/03/10/missouri-primary-election-results-joe-biden-beats-bernie-sanders-nbc-projects.html