Super Tuesday 2020: Sanders Leads in California but Biden Has a Big Night

Former Vice President Joe Biden came roaring back into the hunt for the Democratic presidential nomination on Super Tuesday with big wins in at least nine states — including surprise upsets in Texas, Minnesota and Massachusetts (where Sen. Elizabeth Warren finished in a surprising third place).

Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders, who was widely expected to cement his lead as the front-runner, managed to win in Utah, Colorado and his home state of Vermont.

As of early Wednesday, Sanders also held a strong lead in delegate-rich California, while Biden had the edge in Maine, which had been widely expected to lean toward Sanders. Still, the strong showing for Biden, including in California, gave new life to his campaign since he could also emerge as the lead in delegates needed to secure the party’s nomination. (In addition to Texas, Massachusetts and Minnesota, Biden secured victories in Oklahoma, Arkansas, Tennessee, Alabama, Virginia and North Carolina.)

It was a disappointing showing for both Warren and former New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg, who only claimed a win in the U.S. territory of American Samoa despite spending $500 million-plus on ads and infrastructure in all the Super Tuesday states. Rep. Tulsi Gabbard (D-Hawaii) picked up only a single delegate, from her birthplace in American Samoa.

There were a total of 1,357 delegates up for grabs this Super Tuesday, with California — which hosted its primary on Super Tuesday for the first time since 2008 — representing 415 of them. Given that Californians have until March 3 to postmark their mail-in ballots, as well as the sheer size of the state, the final results for California’s primary will likely not come until several days — or weeks — after Super Tuesday.

Vermont (16 delegates, 4 p.m. PT/7 p.m. ET)